Maniacal
by lavender skyy
Summary: As we move through life, the force of fate creates events that we only appreciate when we reflect on our existence. Unlikely bonds form and tragedy forever changes the lives of Ness, Jacob, his once-lover Kimber, and the Cullens. Turns AU mid-BD
1. Prologue

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**Summary:**** (because ff allows about 10 characters in theirs lol)**

_As we move through life, the force of fate creates events that we only appreciate when we reflect on our existence._

— R. Harmon

Unlikely bonds form and tragedy forever changes the lives of Ness , Jacob, his once-lover Kimber, and all of the Cullens.

This story contains dark themes, violence; sexual content of both the naughty and nightmarish kind, and other things younger folks should avoid reading.

**Excerpt: **

She laid her head in my lap and looked up at me. _Heaven_. "Jacob, tell me why I can't stay away from you…why I can't get you out of my head…why even now I can't help but want to be near you," she murmured.

I got lost again. My fingertips brushed across her face and lips lightly. She sighed and closed her eyes for a moment before sitting up in front of me. My fingers still caressed her cheek while I continued to lose myself in her. _There's something I'm supposed to be saying right now…_

"Why?" she whispered.

My face crept closer to hers until our lips were less than an inch apart and our noses were almost touching. "Because we're soul mates," I breathed. "True soul mates in every way."

**Chapter A/N: **

**This story turns AU at Renesmee's birth. **

**This is just to give you a little background on how Jacob and Renesmee got to where they are in the beginning of the story. **

**Oh, and I don't Twilight or any of its characters… Stephanie Meyer does. **

**Preface**

**JPOV**

I never thought my life would turn out this way. Not once.

The old saying goes something like 'We are the sum of our decisions'. Everything I've ever done has brought me to where I am today. While I have made more than my fair share of stupid, selfish decisions, I can't say that I regret any of them. It took me a while, but in time I learned that living with regrets is useless.

I had come down the stairs of the Cullen home with intentions of killing the creature that had surely killed Bella. My entire existence was pulling me to the creature, demanding it be killed. In a split-second, I decided that revenge wasn't worth dying for. Killing the thing wouldn't do me a bit of good. I'd end up dead myself. And what's the point in dying in the name of someone you love when they don't love you back?

Bella didn't love me. Not the way I loved her, at least. She never would.

As I approached the landing, I realized that Bella was getting everything she wanted – that was, if Edward was able to save her – and I wasn't part of the pretty little picture. What would be the point in killing the thing and dying when I shouldn't have even been there to begin with? When I was never the one Bella wanted…when Bella begged and pleaded for exactly what was happening…

So, I went with self-preservation. I ran.

After a few months, Seth being in my head became a bother. I wanted to be left alone. The last thing I needed was to exchange thoughts with the most positive person I knew. I sent him back to Sam's pack, but let Leah remain. She didn't phase often and when she did, she didn't bother me.

At first, I was a hodgepodge of emotions ranging from pissed off, to jealous, to disgusted, to hurt.

After a few years, I started to realize that it was time to move on. I still held a great deal of resentment for what had happened, but it became clear that living alone, running, and dwelling on my problems wasn't solving anything.

I didn't know _how_ to move on with my life. I just knew that I had to.

I went home for the first time since it all started. I ate, slept, showered, listened to music, and watched TV. Every few days I made a point to speak to Billy. That was about the extent of my existence. People tried to come by, but I pushed them away. I hated even being in the house. It reminded me of everything that I ran away from. It wasn't so much that I still loved Bella or that I wished things were different; I was still so pissed off at the entire situation. I was mad at the Cullen's, but mostly I was mad at myself.

On the few occasions that I socialized with my old friends, I was miserable. Being surrounded by all the happy-go-lucky imprints and imprintees was nauseating. When Embry came home from college on Spring Break, he forced me out of the house with him. Since he was single and hadn't imprinted, it was easier to be around him. He wasn't unhappy in his life, but he wasn't disgustingly lovesick like the wolves that had imprinted. I could handle being around him.

We stayed quiet for the most part, playing video games and listening to music in companionable silence. It wasn't weird; it was like he understood. He talked about school a little, and he seemed to enjoy having a life outside of the reservation and friends who didn't turn into giant wolves.

By the time he left to go back to school, my mind was made up. I'd start college in the fall.

**NPOV**

Looking from the outside, you'd think my life had been perfect since the day I was born.

Hardly.

Aside from the obvious unusual facets of my family dynamic and being half vampire, my life was pretty normal…the type of normal that _should_ be considered normal, not the idealistic meaning of normal where everything is roses and lollipops. Except when I was a child – which was less than three years – those days really were 'roses and lollipops' normal.

Once adolescence began, things changed.

I didn't have any friends my age, human or immortal. It was as if everyone expected me to be just fine with being surrounded by adults and no one else. Like any normal person, I wanted to socialize. They tried to shelter me from the outside world. I felt like a prisoner. My biggest treat was going shopping…but even then I was dragged wherever everyone else wanted to go and wore what everyone else thought I should. I couldn't complain, at least they let me out of the house.

I traveled with my parents to my grandmother's island a couple of times. It was beautiful, but it only felt like prison in paradise. The outdoor activities were different and exciting, but I was still alone. I wanted a companion. Someone to play with, to talk to, to understand me. Someone I wasn't related to.

Being forced out of the public eye wouldn't have been so bad if I at least had a friend or two. Rosalie and Alice tried to fill the void, but Alice made me feel like her toy and Rosalie was more like a second mother than a friend.

I'd seen so many movies and read so many books that my imagination went wild with dreams of things I'd do when I was able to escape the prison they called my home. Dad went through a spell where I wasn't allowed to watch local television channels because I'd see commercials for things like skating rinks, bowling alleys, and arcades. I'd beg and plead to go with no success. They offered to build me my own and buy all the arcade games I wanted, but what fun was playing alone?

On a few occasions, my parents caved and took me skating. They were worried the entire time that I'd run into someone and project my thoughts into their mind or say the wrong thing or forget to call them by their first name instead of Mom and Dad.

My desire for more than just friends kicked in when I physically reached about fifteen. Every other hot guy on TV became the object of my affection. I'd write stories about the things I thought of doing. My laptop was home to countless tales of love and physical affection.

Dad hated it. I should have probably tried to avoid thinking about anything like that. It only further fueled his reasoning for keeping me from the outside world. I wanted to date, to have a boyfriend. Things like that weren't an option, though. How could I find a boyfriend if I was rarely let out of the area surrounding our house?

A few weeks after my sixth birthday, I took my life in my own hands. I was about sixteen physically, and growing every day. The thought barely crossed my mind right before I grabbed my wallet, jumped out of my bedroom window, and ran.

I ran as fast as I could through the woods. Once I reached the gas station a few miles down the road from our house, I knew I was in the clear. It was noon and the sun – by the grace of _God_ – was shining, so no one could come after me. Even if they tried to drive to where they most certainly knew I was, they would have to get out of the car – sparkles in full effect – and drag me with them kicking and screaming right in front of everyone at the gas station.

I immediately went to the ATM and took out as much as the machine would allow – five hundred dollars. It felt so strange to be alone and in a public place. I walked around the outside of the gas station for a few minutes before deciding to approach a young-looking guy who was pumping gas into an older model Ford F150. It didn't take much money or persuasion to get him to drive me to the bank – where I emptied my account – and then to the airport.

I hopped on the first plane to one of the sunniest places I could go without a passport – California. Freedom was scary. I had no idea what I was doing. After a few days of staying in a cheap motel – the only place that would reserve to someone under the age of 21 without a major credit card – luck paid me a visit. I met a nomad named Warren.

Warren and I bumped into each other while I was out wandering the streets in search of some form of entertainment. He knew I wasn't human but couldn't figure out what I was from a distance, so he approached me. His brown contacts didn't do much to disguise his blood red irises from my enhanced vision. I didn't care, though. I was just happy to have someone to keep me company. We walked around talking for hours. He was charming, flirtatious, and _God_ he was gorgeous. I had absolutely no experience with anything like this before, but it wasn't hard to guess that the boiling feeling all over my body was pure lust.

We spent a lot of time together and became close friends. After a few weeks of fantasizing about him and spending every waking moment with him, I was set on getting what I wanted. Part of it was ridiculous, adolescent rebellion. But a large part of me just really wanted to hook up with Warren. Any female in her right mind would want to. He was sweet and well-mannered yet seductively handsome.

We went to the beach one night. I'd never seen him so close to naked before. I knew he was well muscled from the numerous times he'd wrapped his arm around my waist or hugged me against his chest, but I had no idea just how unbelievably flawless he was.

I convinced him to come back to my motel room for the first time since we'd met almost a month before. I wasn't sure if it was the pent up anger and frustration or the fact that I was ridiculously attracted to him, but when we entered the room I immediately pushed him into the wall – knocking the sconce off and almost making an indentation of his body – and pulled his lips to mine.

He asked me "Are you sure?" hundreds of times that night. Every time he was about to do something new, he asked. I was _abso-fucking-lutely_ sure. Virginity be damned, I wanted Warren. Not as my boyfriend, not as my mate. No, I wanted to use his body to satisfy every lustful fantasy that had ever passed through my mind. He was only seventeen physically and twenty one in actuality, so convincing him to do everything I wanted wasn't that difficult.

The conversation following the first time we had sex was unexpected and awkward. Warren had the _wrong_ idea. He thought I wanted to be with him as more than friends. I hardly expected anyone his age – neither actually nor physically – to be hurt by a girl suggesting they only be friends who satisfy each other physically. He got over it, though.

Since then, Warren and I were just that. Great friends who had mind-blowing sex.

I'd call my mom or Rosalie from a payphone every couple of weeks, but that was the full extent of the communication with my family. I wasn't surprised that no one was putting money in my bank account. Dad had probably put his foot down about that. My money eventually ran out and I had to go home. I had only been gone for about four months.

It took a lot of persuasion and guarantees of sexual favors to get Warren to come back with me. Especially since I told him he'd either have to go vegetarian or travel a few hundred miles to feed...and that my father was a mind reader and he'd need to try to avoid fantasizing about me if he wanted to keep his genitals attached.

When I got back, Dad wasn't quite the asshole I thought he would be. He was pretty upset with me, but he didn't try to boss me around or keep me locked up. That was all I wanted. He hated Warren at first, but I put my foot down and insisted he be nice if he wanted me speaking to him again. Dad also made it a point to make me feel guilty for stringing Warren along like I did. Warren knew exactly what he was getting out of me – good friendship and sex – and it wasn't my fault if he kept hoping it would turn into something more.

**A/N: **

**I like to imagine a slightly younger Smith Jarrod from Sex and the City as Warren. YUM! **


	2. If it gets you off my back

**Chapter 2 – If it gets you off my back**

**A/N: **

**I don't own Twilight or anything related to it… **

**Renesmee POV **

Being back at home had its pros and cons. Dad was in a perpetual state of grumpiness when I was around. He only spoke to me when absolutely necessary. Emmett and Jasper liked to pretend that Warren – who was always at my side – didn't exist at all. I wasn't allowed to have sex in the house even though everyone else did. Dad had forbid us from sleeping in the same bed. I didn't mind that as much as he probably hoped I would. Warren and I weren't like that. Cuddling up into his chest and falling asleep wasn't my thing. Well, that's how _I_ felt at least.

On a positive note, I was fed regularly and I didn't feel the need to wear flip flops when I showered. Alice bought me all new clothes, since the ones I had before I left no longer fit.

Warren and I had just walked in the door from a "walk in the woods" – otherwise known as Warren/Nessie playtime – when Dad approached me, a stack of thick envelopes in his hands.

He gave Warren his usual glare before speaking. "Renesmee, could you join me in the dining room? _Alone_?" The kindness in his voice was clearly forced.

Warren removed his arm from my waist and stepped aside. "If you don't mind, may I take a shower?" he asked Dad.

_Be nice_, I thought just for Dad.

He rolled his eyes. "Yes. Use the bathroom beside mine and Bella's room." He didn't bother looking at Warren as he spoke. Warren left at once. "Considering how much I loathe his existence, I shouldn't feel sorry for him. But I do. It would be a lot easier to tolerate him if he were officially your mate. Well, and if he'd been a true gentleman by not defiling you and taking your innocence mere weeks after meeting you."

One more thing to add to my list of cons – Dad knowing every single detail of my private life…now that I actually had one. Warren didn't _defile_ me. He didn't even know I was a virgin until after the fact.

"Irrelevant," Dad interrupted my thoughts. "I have something I want to show you. Can we try to be civil for a little while?" He actually sounded sincere.

I forced a smile. "Sure, Dad."

He put the envelopes on the dining room table. He and Mom sat down and gestured for me to sit across from them. "I think this will help us all," he began. Mom nodded in agreement and smiled sweetly at me. I gave her a genuine smile in return. She was only partially at fault for my bitter demeanor. She wasn't the enforcer, but she did allow Dad to behave the way he had.

Dad rolled his eyes and continued. "You don't have to go if you don't want to. But we would like for you to attend college. If you want to go somewhere nearby, that's fine. Where is entirely up to you."

He was being nice almost. I couldn't help the mental chuckle at the thought of choosing to go nearby versus far away. There was no question in my mind of what I'd choose. I took a deep breath and tried to focus on the words coming out of his mouth instead of all the places I'd rather go other than somewhere nearby.

I saw Dad's jaw tighten at my thoughts. He didn't say anything, though. I guess he really was trying to be nice. "You're correct, Renesmee. Now, back to our discussion. You can go wherever you like. We'll pay for everything, keep you fed and clothed, pocket money in your bank account—"

His words stopped flowing and silence hung in the air. His neck muscles tightened. After a few seconds, I started to worry if something was wrong that I couldn't hear yet. I tried not to think of asking him exactly what he considered 'pocket money,' then tried to not let my mind ponder all the glorious things I could do with it.

Finally, he let out a deep breath. "And we'll buy you a car," Mom finished for him.

I squeaked aloud. _A car_. Holy hell…the things I could do with a car. _Let freedom ring!_

"With stipulations," Dad continued. I slumped forward in my seat and nodded for him to continue. "Your GPA can't drop below a 3.5, you can't get arrested, no drug use, you have to stay on the pill, no drinking and driving…"

_Wait, so there can be drinking?_

Dad grumbled.

"Random thought, Dad." I didn't even mean to think it. But hell, he opened himself up for it.

"There's one more thing. This is a plea, Renesmee, not a demand." His voice was solemn.

"Yes?"

He looked around absently, searching for the right words. "Please. You have someone to…keep you company…Please don't…lie with anyone else. _Especially_ not a human. As much as I'd truly rather not know, I've seen how your projecting becomes spontaneous…when you…ugh…walk in the woods." His voice was low and he looked like he was in pain as he spoke.

"Dad! What if I become friends with another vampire? What if I join a sex-crazed coven like the Denalis?"

Dad was about to speak but Mom began first. "Renesmee, the Denali women are," I rolled my eyes, knowing exactly what she was about to say, "adults. And they aren't sex crazed. Your Dad and I would like it if you could…preserve yourself a little until you find someone you truly want to be with. Is that too much to ask? Warren is clearly more than willing to follow you anywhere and fulfill your…needs. And for Pete's sake, I don't see why you won't just take him as your mate. He's handsome, charming, he cares about you—"

"Enough. He can probably hear you," I grumbled.

"He's not listening. I wish he were…or thinking of anything but what he's currently thinking about," Dad mumbled.

"Alright. We have a deal." I reached forward and scooped up what I assumed was application packets.

"Here, you'll need this." Dad handed me a document containing all of the personal information I'd need to fill in. I was puzzled when I read my name – Renesmee Mason. "There can only be so many Cullen prodigies, honey. We don't want to draw attention to ourselves."

"You said anywhere, right?" I asked. He nodded.

I brought the stack of applications up to my bedroom and spread them across the bed. As expected, they were mostly Ivy League schools. How _Dad_. He knew me better than anyone in the world. Surely he didn't actually think I'd be interested in attending some stick-in-the-mud, dry Ivy League school.

I pulled my laptop onto the bed, propped myself on my elbows, and started my research. I came across an awesome website that would help me narrow the schools down. First I selected the states I would be interested in – California, Texas, Arizona, Nevada, Georgia, Florida, North and South Carolina, and Virginia. All warm, sunny states. When I came to the part where I had to choose things I'd like from a campus, a thought came to mind. I opened a search engine and typed in 'Top Party Universities'.

What luck, there were six schools in the states I was interested in going to. University of Florida, Georgia, Texas at Austin, California at Santa Barbara, Arizona, and Florida State. Warren let himself in my room as I continued to read on about the potential schools I'd attend.

"Wanna take a trip?" I asked him, looking up to see his mostly naked and dripping wet body standing beside my bed. I watched a bead of water run from his shaggy blonde hair down his thick chest until it reached the towel. How could a person be as blessed physically as he was?

He shut my laptop, tossed it onto a chair in the corner, and pinned me beneath him.

"What are you doing? Not in the house!" I whispered urgently as he trailed kisses down my neck, sending a chill through me.

He continued his path as he spoke, "Mommy…Daddy…your _asshole_ uncles…and everyone else…left." He lifted my shirt and swirled his tongue around my firm nipple.

A moan escaped my lips. "We don't know…" another moan as his fingertips grazed my inner thigh and entrance, "… when they'll be back."

I felt his arousal pressing against my leg through the towel. His mouth moved down my stomach. He grabbed my hand and went lower, pulling my shorts and panties down with his free hand, until finally reaching my dripping core. "No more talking," he whispered. The cold air from his lips made my clit ache.

Finally, his tongue began to flick my swollen and throbbing nub, eliciting moan after moan. He groaned as my pleasure traveled from my mind to his through our connected hands.

"Warren…aah…sssss…we have to…stop."

"Just cum for me, baby," he said quickly, immediately returning to the tongue lashing he was giving my clit. As if to make me lose all train of thought, he slid two fingers inside. I couldn't help but think to myself how I didn't like it when he called me 'baby'. I heard him sigh at the thought he had just heard through our connected hands before he picked up the pace, bringing me even closer to the edge of an explosive orgasm.

His tongue flicked at a speed no human could ever reach, like a vibration.

"Aaah…fuck…sss…Oh, _God_ yeah." My moans and pants picked up in intensity and I felt my orgasm building just below the surface. Warren groaned in pleasure, exciting me impossibly more. My free hand pinched and pulled my nipple while Warren trailed his pinky along the outside of my other entry. My mind left my body and I couldn't see, hear or smell anything at all. Thoughts were lost. The only thing I experienced was absolute pleasure.

My hips bucked and my body writhed as he continued to assault my clit. Finally, my body fell limp and his flicks slowed to more like an open mouth kiss. The way he sucked my juices into his mouth turned me on all over again. I reached down and ripped the towel off his waist then pulled him on top of me. Just as I positioned his rock-solid cock at my opening, I heard what could only me vampires running through the woods.

Warren grabbed his towel from the floor and looked stunned. I jerked my shorts on. His head quickly darted around the room, apparently looking for somewhere to hide or something to put on his body. In a flash, he was in my closet. _What the fuck was he thinking that would accomplish?_

"We didn't leave so you could have sex, Renesmee!" Dad hissed. His eyes darted between the closet and me.

"Why _did_ you leave exactly?" I asked, forcing my voice to sound just as harsh as his, though it was impossible to be pissed about anything at this point. Hell, it was hard enough just to think coherently.

He rolled his eyes. "To let you concentrate on finding a school!"

"Well, I did. Six of them. And I'm leaving to tour them as soon as possible," I said condescendingly.

"Warren, get out of the fucking closet," Dad commanded. Warren stepped out, towel around his waist. "Do _NOT_ test me. I _want_ to like you, Warren. But right now, you're making that very difficult."

Warren looked down at his feet. "I'm sorry, sir," he said, barely audible.

Dad sighed and walked out. I ran to the spare room where Warren's things were and grabbed him some clean clothes.

"Here. We're going for a walk."

We went to a place in the woods we had visited frequently and put a blanket down across the damp ground. We laid beside each other in silence for a while before Warren finally spoke.

"Why don't you like it when I call you baby?"

I let out a sigh. "Because I'm not yours, Warren. You know I don't think of you that way. You're my best friend and we just happen to have awesome sex. You said you were okay with that. So why are you pushing for more?"

He rolled onto his side and his fingers caress my cheeks, neck, shoulders, and collarbone lovingly. I tried not to look scornful. "This does nothing for you? You don't enjoy this? You don't want this?" The look in his eyes would probably melt the average female, vampire and human alike.

I had to be nice. I cared a great deal for Warren. The last thing I wanted to do was push him away. I just wanted things to stay the way they were. Well, the way they were for me, at least. I turned my body to face him.

"It's not like that for me. I don't…want you that way. I'm truly sorry. If you want to leave and stop being friends with me, I understand," I said gently.

His expression as I spoke answered every underlying question. There was no way he'd leave me. Now or ever. He didn't have to speak, but he did anyway, "Do you want me to leave?

My head spontaneously jerked back and my brows knitted together. "No! I may not be in love with you, but I really do like you. You're the only friend I've ever had. I care about you." I rested my hand on his where it laid on my shoulder.

His face softened. I _should_ be in love with him. I _should_ want to be with him. He was such a wonderful person. He accepted me exactly the way I was…stubborn as hell, rebellious, selfish, spoiled…

"Beautiful, caring, kindhearted, fun, adventurous, playful," he continued where my thoughts left off. "Renesmee, _you_ are a wonderful person. That's why I follow you around the way I do. Look, I'll stop waiting for you to fall in love with me, okay?"

I pulled my hand away from his. Apparently any intense situation could cause spontaneous projection of my thoughts. _Hmm…that's new._

"Just friends?" I asked. He nodded. "Well, friends who hook up?"

"Abso-fucking-lutely," he groaned, rolling himself on top of me. "Now where were we?"

His mouth traveled across my jaw. "We were talking about…touring schools." It was becoming hard to concentrate with his hands traveling all over my body the way they were.

"Mmm…right," he said against my skin, running open mouth kisses along my neck.

"Will you come with me?" I asked in a broken whisper.

He thrust his hips against me, his erection very evident. "Fuck yeah I'll cum with you…" he took my breast into his mouth. "Over and over."

I shivered and whimpered. "That's not what I…" I trailed off.

"Yes, I'll go with you. Now, my balls are going to explode if you don't let me have my way with you," his deep, needy voice vibrated through my body to the bone.

"Take me," I moaned.

We were instantly naked. This made for the third time that day. Not entirely uncommon when we were in California, but here we didn't usually have time for more than once or twice a day at best.

He flicked his head against my opening and clit a few times. I was more than ready. There was no need for all of the romantic gestures and formalities with us. We weren't making love, we were fucking.

He managed to get me off twice before reaching his climax. He collapsed on top of me, laying kisses along my neck, jaw, and then slowly creeping across my cheek to my lips. He stopped once he reached just beside my mouth and pulled himself off of me. Kissing on the lips meant something different to him than it did me. We'd kissed every now and then during foreplay, but there was nothing sweet or loving about those kisses.

Once we got back to the house, I planned our two week cross-country college tour. We would hit all six on my list, focusing primarily on finding out more about the nightlife. I used some money from my now-funded checking account to book all of the appropriate flights and hotel rooms. I was rather proud of myself. I managed to map out my game plan with no help from my parental units.

It was easy to narrow my list down after visiting the schools. The southeastern schools were by far the most fun. Something about the combination of southern charm and how the culture was so different from up north or California really turned me on to them. After much consideration, I decided on UGA. The Florida schools were awesome, but I was entirely too pale to ever blend in there.

The flight home from our last school was pretty quiet. I was tired from all of the traveling and nervous about actually going to school.

"Warren?"

"Yeah?" He turned to look at me.

"I've never really been on my own before." I paused. He looked at me, waiting for me to continue. I took a deep breath and pushed it out. "Will you…come with me?"

His eyes locked on mine and he didn't speak for a long moment. "I don't know. I'll have to check my schedule. I think there's another drop-dead-gorgeous girl I promised to follow all over the country and satisfy her every desire."

I shoved him. "Shut up. Seriously, will you? For a little while at least?"

His mouth formed a smug grin. "Only if I'll get to see you with another girl like we did the other night. _Fuck_ that was hot. Gets my dick hard just thinking about it." He was referring to the night we brought this incredibly sexy nomad back to our hotel when we were visiting UGA. I smiled, remembering the way she brought me pleasure in ways I'd never imagined.

"No humans," I insisted.

His brows knitted. "Why? I don't have to touch her." He didn't sound concerned about my stipulation, just curious.

"You don't, but _I _do. I can't be with a human. You know that." Projecting was impossible to control when I was completely lost in sexual acts.

He shrugged. "Eh…she won't even know what's happening if she's on the right drugs."

"I'm not going to drug a girl."

"Renesmee, it's _college_. You won't have to drug her. Drugs are an extra curricular at most of the schools we visited." He had a point.

"So you'll come with me?"

"Of course. I'm sure Daddy will be thrilled."

"Can I ask one more teensy tiny favor of my bestest friend in the world?"

He tensed a little. The tone of my voice wasn't promising. He knew it'd be something he wouldn't like. "You can _ask_."

"I've never once said anything to you about your…eating habits. I try not to think about it but there's no denying that you take human lives. Warren, you don't have to do what I'm about to ask. I'm not your mate and have no right to ask, much less expect you to do it. But, is there any possibility that you would consider taking up animal blood?"

"If it's important to you, I will try," he said without vacillation. He took my hand in his and I let my gratitude flow freely through our connection.

On the contrary to Warren's smart-ass prediction, Dad was thrilled. He hoped Warren could keep me from further tainting myself. I was fine with only fucking Warren. Surely Dad couldn't get pissed if we invited an immortal female to join us from time to time. Girl-on-girl didn't count as a notch in the bedpost, did it?

I took Dad's lack of acknowledgement of that thought as confirmation that it wasn't an issue with him. Not that he condoned it at all, but at this point he wasn't going to do anything to further push me away unless it was something he absolutely wouldn't tolerate.

After spending all of spring and summer with Warren and my family, I was convinced that I wasn't meant to fall in love. I wasn't sure if I ever would. Dad thought he would be a good mate for me, and that spoke volumes about him. As much as it would have pleased both Dad and Warren, I couldn't so much as bring myself to try to fall in love with him. One time, I let him get really close to kissing me the way he always wanted to – softly and sensually – but when his mouth was mere millimeters from mine, I winced. We didn't do any further experiments after that.

Since I was a freshman from out of state, it was required that I live on campus. I really hoped Dad would be able to pull some strings so that Warren and I could share a place off campus. No such luck. I couldn't even get a single dorm. Alice said I'd like my roommate, so at least I had that.

Warren didn't want me to pay for anything having to do with his living arrangements. I told him to consider it repayment for everything he did for me. For accompanying me and guiding me through this unfamiliar and uncomfortable time, for dealing with my long list of faults, and especially for all of the physical satisfaction he provided me. Besides, it wasn't like we could have sex in my dorm. Vegetarian for six months or not, he wasn't prepared to be around that many bodies just yet. He still didn't want to accept my offer, but it didn't keep me from renting him a small house buried deep in the woods.

**A/N: **

**UGA is the # 1 Party School this year. **

**This chapter covers a lot of ground but it will slow down soon. **


	3. Step One

**Chapter 3 – Step One**

**A/N: I don't own Twilight or anything related to it. I think I can claim ownership of Warren and Kimber though. Oh, and I don't advocate unprotected sex with someone you've just met ****. **

**JPOV**

Embry was already attending University of Georgia. I could vaguely recall him citing his reasons for choosing it: the distance from Washington, the football team, and how southern girls were so amazing. It wasn't difficult to find all sorts of grants and scholarships available to Native Americans. Being in good graces with the council – thanks to being part of the pack, when I actually was – it was easy to get my school records forged. I did take my GED before starting, though.

Embry was entering sophomore year when I started attending that fall. Adjusting wasn't as easy as I thought it would be. He lived in a dorm on the opposite side of campus so we didn't see each other much the first few weeks of school. All things considered, I was fine with it.

Things moved at a slow pace in the beginning. Classes were boring and I had to pay close attention to keep up. I made an honest effort to study and tried to get decent grades. If I wanted to stay in school and keep my grants and scholarships, I'd have to keep my grades up.

It felt good to be doing something besides sulking. I felt productive. Human. Alive.

Other than that, though, I was still the same. Empty. Alone.

Embry dragged me to a big party one weekend. I really should have been studying, but he insisted I come. When it was all said and done, I was glad I did. He got me drunk for the first time in my life. It was difficult for us – no one could out-drink us, that was for sure. I felt like liquor was being poured down my throat all night. And I was okay with that. Once my guard was let down and I felt relaxed, I started to notice the people around me.

People spoke to me and I actually spoke back. A head of curly reddish brown hair caught my attention from across the room. I couldn't see her face, but my eyes took charge and scoped out everything I could see of her – her long, slender legs, her smooth skin, and this full ass that just begged to be groped. For a second, I worried that I was about to imprint. My eyes immediately went to the floor. Getting laid would have been a nice change from my usual porn and hand routine, but not if it meant I was going to imprint on the girl. I hadn't looked at a real-life girl with so much lust since before I started running. This feeling was so unfamiliar… wanting someone.

My fingers nervously fidgeted with my long hair as I stared at the floor. I tried to force thoughts of her from my mind, but all effort was lost when her red stilettos came into the area of the floor I had been focusing on.

"Hi. You look like you could use some company," she said. I gave up and looked at her face. _No imprinting. Thank God._ "I'm Kimber." I may not have imprinted, but I definitely wanted her. Not to love her or kiss her. I wanted to pin her to my shitty dorm bed and fuck her senseless.

"Hey. I'm Jacob," I said trying to not sound nervous. I'd never been in a situation like this. I'd flirted and fantasized about the things I wanted to do with various girls, but I'd never actually thought about acting on them. We were in _college_, it wouldn't be too difficult to get what I wanted.

Embry walked up with two hands full of shot glasses. He sat them on the table and scooted two in front of me. _Good. Liquid confidence._ He handed Kimber one shot as well and we took them.

"Who's your friend, Jake?" Embry asked.

"Kimber."

She nodded and smiled at him, but I noticed her face change when she looked back at me. It was like I could see the attraction in her eyes. She sat down in my lap and began to play with my hair. I thought it was odd for someone to be so forward, but we were both pretty wasted and definitely not the only strangers within such close proximity of each other.

"Got any plans for the night?" she whispered seductively in my ear. Her warm breath on my skin made me want her even more.

My hand squeezed her thigh and she ground her ass into my lap. "Nothing I can't reschedule."

The small coherent part of my brain was in shock. Sure, I was a bitter asshole, but was I really one of those guys that banged girls he picked up at parties? _Yes indeed._ Besides, she was practically begging for it.

Her mouth came even closer to my ear. Her lips grazed my earlobe as she spoke, "I have a single dorm." Her hands ran across my chest and arms and I noticed her admiring gaze. She did that little wiggle thing again and I had to swallow back the nervousness building in my throat.

She stood and grabbed my hand, pulling me to the kitchen. She bent over to pick a couple of beers up out of a cooler, making a point to press her ass against my groin. Any hesitation I had previously felt was out the window. I was counting the minutes to when I'd be slapping that ass from behind. She tossed back another shot that was handed to her and I took several chugs straight from the bottle of Jack on the counter. She continued to pull me by the hand out the door.

Once we were a couple of blocks away from the party, I felt a little weird. We were all alone. It Hooking up with her seemed so much more dirty and wrong without the distraction of loud music and people dry humping in public. I tried to distract the tiny, sober part of my brain by focusing on how much we both wanted this.

"My dorm's just right down the road. Statham Hall," she said, slurring.

That was my dorm, too, but I wasn't sure if she should know that or not. I tried not to think about how this was nothing like I thought it would be. She may have been a nice girl, but I couldn't see her as more than means to an end. I looked in her eyes and saw nothing. She had a pretty smile, but it didn't draw me to her the way it might if she were supposed to be something more to me. The things I noticed all came back to sex – her full cleavage, the curve of her lips and how they would look wrapped around my shaft, the way her ass moved when she walked, or how I wanted to grip her hair and pull as I drilled her.

The walk back was silent but thankfully it was over quickly. As soon as we were in her room – just two floors above me – she was on me. Her mouth assaulted mine and I let her push me onto her bed. I watched as she stripped off her shirt and those heavenly skin- tight jeans she was wearing. She looked like something straight out of a porn video – matching hot pink bra and thong, perfect breast implants, and her ass just begged to be slapped.

She flicked off all the lights except for her desk lamp, crawled on top of me, and pulled my shirt off. Her hands ran across my bare skin hungrily before reaching my belt buckle. She pulled my shorts and boxers off, tossing them onto the floor. One of her hands stroked my cock while the other played with her pussy. If I wasn't turned on before, I definitely was now. Much to my pleasure, she brought her mouth down to my erection and began to slide up and down. My eyes rolled back in my head for a second, but then I realized that I should definitely be watching this.

"Oh fuck," I groaned. I'd never felt anything so amazing before. This was better than I could ever imagine. She moaned and continued her up and down motions. I grabbed her by the waist and sat her on top of me. I rubbed my head against her clit roughly while she moaned and bucked her hips. I couldn't wait anymore. I had to have her. My hand on her hip slid her down onto my cock.

She bounced on top of me. I watched as she played with herself and used my cock like it was a tool and she was a skilled craftsman. "Mmm…fuck…you're so…big…aah," she moaned.

I flipped her onto her stomach and positioned myself behind her. She popped her ass in the air and reached back for my cock. "Give it to me," she begged.

"You want this?" I asked teasingly, rubbing her opening with my head.

"Mmm yeah. God you make me feel so good. _Please_ fuck me." How could I say no to that?

I roughly slid inside her at once and thrust my length in and out, eliciting moans and obscenities from Kimber. I slapped her ass roughly and she screamed in pleasure.

"Yeah… sss…. aaah… Again," she pleaded.

So I did. My hand came down and laid a sharp smack across her ass. She let out another scream. I pounded into her harder and harder and enjoyed watching her body convulse as she orgasmed again and again.

I figured the sex would be over in a matter of minutes, but the alcohol seemed to be prolonging things. Half an hour after we started – and after Kimber quite visibly exploded four times – I felt my own orgasm building. My cock began to swell and throb inside her. She pulled me out of her and turned around, taking my cock into her mouth while continuing to play with herself. Her moans against my shaft sent me over the edge and I blew my load down her throat. She stroked and sucked me down to the last drop.

I collapsed onto her bed, out of breath and completely satisfied. To hell with guilt. How could I feel guilty? The girl wanted it, begged for it, and it was _very_ clear she enjoyed it. She took a chug of the water on her nightstand and fell into my side. I didn't feel comfortable wrapping my arm around her, so I just let her rest her head against my sweaty chest.

"That was fucking awesome," she said. Her breath was still a little quick like mine was. "We'll have to do it again sometime."

"Fine by me," I said with a laugh. I was a little uncomfortable laying in this strange girl's bed with her curled into my frame.

"Your friend was right about you."

Oh God, what had Embry done? "Whaddayou mean?"

"I've seen you around campus and wanted to approach you, but you're always so withdrawn. I talked to that guy you came to the party with. He basically told me that you were my kind of guy."

"How exactly?" I asked, trying not to sound annoyed.

"You know… you're not looking for a relationship but you aren't one of those assholes who fucks a girl then talks shit to all of his friends about her. I just like to play, Jacob. I'm not in college to find the love of my life like some girls. But I do have needs."

Not as bad as I thought it would be. "I can definitely help you out with that," I groaned. For the first time, my hand reached down to touch her sensitive area. "You ready for more?"

Her eyes squeezed shut and she shuddered. "No one's ever made me cum like that," she breathed. "I'll take all I can get."

After a couple more hours of sweaty, rough, mind-blowing sex, I reached down to the floor for my clothes.

"You can actually walk after all that?" Kimber asked.

"I don't have to walk far. I'm on the fourth floor."

She smiled devilishly. "How convenient. Well, I'm sure I'll see you around. You know where to find me. Want my number?"

_Do I?_ I thought for a moment. She wasn't expecting me to follow up on this little tryst with any intentions of taking her out on romantic dates. She said it herself, she just wanted to fuck. "Sure."

"Call any time," she said, handing me the slip of paper with her number, running her free hand across my now clothed chest as if she wanted more.

And that's how it started. Kimber was the best non-girlfriend a guy could ever ask for. She was good in bed – well, I had nothing to compare to but things I'd seen in videos, so I could only guess as much. She didn't want any attachments, she was kinky as fuck, and she was actually a really fun person to be around. We hung out a lot together. She helped me with my schoolwork, we got wasted and partied together, had sex whenever either of us felt like it, and so on. Embry was actually a little regretful he'd sent her my way instead of trying to score with her himself.

I wasn't emotionally attached to her, but she did fill a void in my life. I felt better when I was around her, less angry and resentful. Maybe it was because I was distracted, but maybe it was because I was healing inside. Maybe she was helping me. As much as I got off, maybe the lack of pent-up testosterone was loosening me up. She was a real friend. It was nice to talk to someone who knew so little about me and my past.

After a few months, I started to open up to her. We talked more. She was very good at reading people. Well, me at least. Whenever I'd hold back, she'd drag it out of me. It was really hard to talk about anything from my past. Not because I didn't want to talk to her, but because there was so much she just didn't need to know. How was I supposed to tell her I ran around as a wolf for years or how my best friend chose to become a vampire despite my best efforts?

I stayed in Georgia as much as possible. I went home for Spring Break but decided to attend classes straight through the summer. It wasn't so much that I was trying to be an over-achiever, I just didn't want to hurt my dad's feelings. I wanted to have a decent excuse for not coming home. He wasn't the reason I didn't want to return. Being surrounded by wolves, being reminded of everything I was trying to get past.… that was why I didn't want to go back.

Unfortunately, Kimber didn't have the same desire to take classes through summer. At least she lived in Georgia, though. She was waitressing some place in Atlanta but she visited me on a few of her days off.

I was lonely again. And I didn't even have Embry or big parties to distract me.

**A/N: **

**Any volunteers to keep poor, lonely Jacob company? Sign up by clicking 'Review' ;-) lol. **


	4. Distracted

**A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews and big thanks to my betas at PTB, TwilightHeart21 and DeeDreamer! You've both been a big help! **

**Chapter 4 – Distracted **

**NPOV**

I arrived at school a few days before classes were scheduled to start. It felt nice to be free again. The months spent at home weren't as bad as pre-runaway prison, but I didn't like having to follow my parents' ridiculous rules. As promised, they gave me a car. Alice picked it – a bright red BMW convertible. Warren and I packed it full of everything we could fit and drove it down to Georgia. We spent part of the first few days shopping for necessities for my dorm and his little house in the woods.

My roommate's name was Ella. We had more in common than I ever thought I could have with a human. She, too, was happy to be free of her parents and couldn't wait to take full advantage of college life. She wasn't quite as rebellious as I had been. She didn't run away for months. Our circumstances were completely different, though. Her father wasn't a mind reader and she was actually allowed to have friends.

The day school started, I smelled the most breathtaking smell lingering in the hall outside my room. It made Warren's scent smell like rotten fruit. I'd never smelled anything remotely like it. I couldn't decide if I wanted to suck dry whoever it was or fuck them. It definitely belonged to a male.

It was the perfect combination of pine and cinnamon and what could only be described as masculinity. I looked around in hopes of finding its source and saw nothing but a handful of girls. Not one single guy.

I shrugged and made my way to the elevator. If he was on my floor, he was undoubtedly visiting his girlfriend. What luck. It was probably for the best. It's not like I could hook up with a human, anyway. I tried to refocus my thoughts on the deliciousness that was Warren but couldn't get the smell out of my head. The scent was everywhere. In the elevator, the entrance to the building, even in the parking lot. It was almost maddening.

My first class – World Literature – bored me to tears. I spent most of the period doodling and daydreaming. I never thought it could take someone two hours to go over a syllabus.

That damn scent caught up with me again on my way to my second class. It was very fresh. I followed it starting from the building where my second class was held, down the long halls packed with humans, and all the way to my Calculus class.

I pretended to look for a vacant seat while discretely trying to match the scent with the person it belonged to. The scent made a clear path and I continued to follow it. It ended at an empty desk toward the back of the room. _Damn_. Apparently whoever the delicious scent belonged to was here earlier.

Concentrating on anything was absolutely impossible as the appealing odor wafted around me the entire class. The intensity decreased as class went on, but it was permanently etched into my brain. I forced myself into thinking that the only satisfaction I wanted from this mystery person was his warm blood flowing down my throat. Maybe he was my singer, like Mom was with Dad. I'd never killed a human, but this smell was unshakable. It had a death grip on me.

In the deep recesses of my mind, I knew I was physically drawn to this person for more than just a meal. Since that wasn't even an option, I gave myself over to fantasies of what he must taste like.

This train of thought only led to me wondering what things other than his blood would taste like. His delicate skin… his warm lips. Then it occurred to me – I could do both. Surely I could seduce him. Girlfriend or not, I was half vampire and came equipped with the ability to allure people. It wouldn't matter if my thoughts were projected to this mystery guy, he'd be dead when it was all said and done with.

_STOP!_

What the hell was I thinking? I couldn't kill a human. Never. Losing my car would be the least of my worries. Dad would undoubtedly and quite literally imprison me for an indefinite amount of time if I killed a human – singer or otherwise. I had to control myself. Maybe I could drop the class and stay with Warren most nights? Or, could I actually learn to deal with this smell and live my life the way I should be?

As much as I cared for Warren and enjoyed his company, I didn't want to live with him. He'd be thrilled if I did. When we were in California, he laid with me while I slept most nights. I didn't think anything of it at the time, but now that I knew he wanted me to be with him, his subtle caresses and embraces took on a new meaning.

The rest of the day was uneventful. Most of my classes were sophomore level and pretty easy. I didn't smell that scent again until I got back to my dorm building; it hit me like a slap in the face. He was so close.

I walked as quickly as I could, trying to catch up with him. I at least needed a face to go with my fantasies. There were too many people out in the halls. It was impossible. His scent led me to an elevator which was already on the fourth floor. I ran up the stairs at a quick human pace as I tried to think of any sane excuse as to why I was about to enter no-man's-land – one of the all-guys floors of the dorm. I decided that if anyone got curious as to why I was there, I'd just pretend I was lost.

When I exited the stairwell, I knew he was definitely there, but not in the hall. I walked around the floor and pinpointed the exact room he was in. I wasn't sure what good knowing that would do me. If anything, it put his life in further danger.

But who was I kidding? Some tiny part of my mind may have wanted his blood, but that applied to every human walking around me as well. I wanted _him_.

At least I didn't look out of place. There were a couple of other girls in the hall. I assumed they were visiting friends. How nonsensical of me to think there would be no girls here. I walked the halls of the fourth floor a bit longer before getting on the elevator. A girl with hair much like mine got on with me. Hers was more red than bronze, but still long with big curls like mine.

"Your boyfriend on the fourth floor?" she asked.

"No, I just got off there by accident. You?" I looked around aimlessly. I wasn't a good liar.

She chuckled. "Just a friend." She ran her fingers through her hair, wafting her scent in my direction, sending a very concentrated dose of _him_ my way. She must have been friends with the mystery guy. "You a freshman?" she continued.

"Yeah."

"Well, I'm Kimber. Looks like we're on the same floor," she said as we exited the elevator together.

"I'm Renesmee. Well, everyone here calls me Ness." Everyone being my roommate and the two girls who lived in the dorm beside us.

She looked like she was checking me out. She was definitely attractive and had this aura of sexuality around her. She didn't look like the typical college slut, but she definitely wasn't virginal. If it weren't for the fact that she was human, I'd absolutely consider inviting her to Warren's place.

"Well here I am." She stopped in front of her dorm. "I'll see you around, Ness." Her eyes locked on mine in the strangest way – was she really giving me _the look_? Emmett told me college could get crazy, but did girls really try to pick up other girls in the halls of dorms?

"See ya," I called back as I walked away.

The moment my door was closed and I gathered that I was alone in my dorm, I called Warren.

"Hey sexy, how was your first day?" he asked.

"Decent, I guess. Are you at home?"

"No, but I'm not far. Why? Everything okay?" How sweet of him to be concerned.

"Everything's fine. I just need some company." My voice was a perfect reflection of how rattled my nerves were.

"Company or _company_?" he asked, putting a naughty emphasis on the second part.

I sighed. "Maybe a little of both. Will you be there in ten minutes?"

"Less than that. See you then."

"Bye."

That damn scent was in the hall again. I noticed it seemed the strongest right outside Kimber's door. I could have stayed and listened to what may have been going on inside, but I decided it was none of my business and kept going toward the elevator. He was everywhere.

I rolled my eyes and got in my car, saying goodbye to the remnants of the smell that still floated in the parking lot. I was so annoyed with this damn scent that I really did want to cause whoever it belonged to bodily harm. I wouldn't, but I wanted to.

Warren was looking sexy as ever when I got to his house. He waited for me on the front porch wearing nothing but a pair of khaki shorts. That shaggy blonde hair just begged to have my fingers clenching it. The way his pelvis was exposed made it clear that he wasn't even wearing boxers. A few rays of sunlight cast through the trees, making parts of his skin shimmer. He noticed my appraising gaze and smiled deviously, flashing those gorgeous dimples. If I was pissed off or annoyed before, it was gone. The only thing left was lust.

"Hey sexy," he murmured, pulling me against his well muscled, cold chest. His hands roamed down my back and squeezed my ass.

My body pressed further against him. "Hey," was all I could say before his lips were on mine. How could something so cold set my body on fire? His tongue danced with mine intensely as he lifted me and walked inside. My skirt came up around my waist as I wrapped my legs around him, my panties pressing against his torso. Before I knew it I was being laid on the bed. Our mouths continued to assault each other while one of his hands slid down to caress my pussy. I moaned into his mouth.

"Strip for me," he asked. His voice was deep and smooth and impossible to deny.

I stood before him on the mattress and took my clothes off the way I'd done so many times before – the way I saw it done in movies my father would rather I had not ever seen. He grunted appreciatively when I finally removed thong and flung it at him.

"Don't give them to me unless I can keep them," he said hungrily, pulling me into his lap.

My hands grasped his hair while his mouth moved down my neck and chest. A gasp escaped me when he finally started nibbling on my nipple.

"Now that Daddy's gone," he paused to suck my nipple roughly, "can I bite?"

He hadn't bitten since I'd brought him home with me. My Dad had a cow when he saw it in my thoughts. Warren never did any damage; he just tasted a little here and there. Out of the numerous times he'd bitten me, he'd never once taken more than an ounce or two. Nothing my body couldn't replenish within a few minutes. Besides, I truly enjoyed it. It was such a pleasurable pain.

"When you fuck me," I said in a moan. Bites made my orgasms so much more intense.

His hand came down and guided his cock to my opening. Before entering, he flicked his head against my clit and I moaned loudly. He rapidly rubbed my clit repeatedly at impossible speeds while his teeth grazed over my nipple. My moans turned into loud screams and my orgasm pooled all over his cock and the sheets moments later. We could definitely never have sex in the dorm.

As soon as my body stopped shuddering, he slid inside, slowly and teasingly. He pulled in and out much too slow. I needed to be fucked… hard… desperately. My hands went to his face and I projected all of my pent up frustration into his mind. His pace picked up to exactly what I needed and I rewarded him by letting him feel my pleasure in his mind.

"Fuck," he grunted. "God Renesmee, you are so fucking amazing," he said as he pounded into my body.

I let him know exactly how amazing he was through our connection while I screamed and begged for more.

He felt my insides tighten against his erection as my orgasm built. He fucked me even harder and leaned down and took my nipple into his mouth. I screamed his name mixed with obscenities as he bit down on the side of my breast and began to suck ever so gently. One of his hands reached down to rub my very swollen clit as I sent the intensity of my orgasm back to him through our connection.

After my second orgasm, I flipped him over so I was on top and took charge. It was my turn to tease. I knew he was very ready for his own orgasm and he had definitely earned it. I slowly slid him in and out of my body while I tickled his balls with the hand that wasn't keeping me vertical. I loved watching his face like this, watching his brows knit, his lips curl, and his eyes roll back. My speed increased and his breathing became rougher. He grunted while I moaned and bounced. I placed my hand on his incredibly sexy abs so he could feel everything I felt. I came again and his cock started to pulse inside me.

I pulled him out of my body and took him into my mouth while I played with myself. I sucked and swallowed the last drop of his load then collapsed beside him.

"You want more?" he asked, bringing his hand down to my overly sensitive area. My mind said _all fucking day_, but my body was beat… figuratively and literally. Plus, I did have to go back to campus sometime soon.

"I don't think so. I've got to let my body heal before I go back. I can't go back with these bruises, ya know?" I said, eyeing the small bruises that were quite clearly his fingerprints across my breasts then the ones from where he'd held me down by my wrists. They'd heal in less than an hour.

Regardless of what I said, Warren began to kiss down my body and I didn't fight him. He brought me to orgasm two more times, making for at least six for the day, using his mouth. At least oral didn't leave me with exposed bruises.

The next day, I spotted Kimber in one of my classes. I guess I was too busy being annoyed to notice before. She invited me to sit with her. We weren't able to chat much during class but we talked as we walked out.

"Where's your next class?" I asked her.

"This is it for the day. I'm heading home. You?" She looked at me, clearly hoping I was too.

"Me too. You want a ride back?" I walked to most of my classes but this class was really far from my dorm.

"Sure," she said as we approached my car.

"Here we are," I said, gesturing to my precious BMW.

"You're a freshman, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

"So you're what, eighteen? Nineteen?" she continued.

"Almost nineteen. My birthday's next month."

"And _this_ is your car?"

"Yes. It's also my parent's way of trying to keep me in line while I'm here. If I screw up, they take it."

"Smart. So how are you faring thus far? Walking the straight and narrow?"

I laughed and we got in the car. "Hardly. I've never been an angel. Their primary concern seems to be keeping me from getting knocked up or locked up. They live far as hell so it's not like they can really keep tabs." Not entirely true, they could very easily spy on me. "Plus, I really don't care. They're just happy to know where I am and that I'm safe."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I ran away for a while. I spent about four months with a friend in California and didn't so much as call them. If they want to be assholes, I'll do it again."

"Why'd you run away?"

Why was I telling this girl so much about me? Hmm… she was smokin' hot, seemed cool, and one of the few non-vampire females I'd ever spoken to for more than ten seconds. That must've been it. "Long story short, they sheltered me entirely too much."

"One day, people will learn that sheltering children isn't the way to keep them out of trouble."

"So what's your story?" I asked.

"Hmm… I'm a junior. I grew up in suburban Atlanta. My parents were more the 'don't ask, don't tell' type. I'm anti-boyfriend. What else is there to tell?"

"Anti-boyfriend," I said questioningly. "Does that mean you're a lesbian?"

She chuckled. "Hardly. I like both, but I could never go without having a guy. A friend and I have a mutual agreement. We basically just use each other for sex and go on about our lives. It's easy. No strings, no emotions. Just sex."

I smiled inwardly. "I have something kinda like that, too."

"Already? You're quick."

"No, he came with me here. He's the guy I stayed with in Cali."

"Damn. A dude followed you all the way from California. Do you have beer flavored nipples or something?"

"Truth be told, he's pretty much in love with me. He knows it's never going to happen, though. I love sleeping with him, but it'll never be more than friends with us."

"Same here. My friend's a great guy and all, but I'm just not into settling down. College is for partying, not finding your soul mate."

"Exactly!" This girl was too much like me. It even smelled like we had on the same kind of perfume.

"Wanna go hit up Summits for something to eat? A friend of mine works nights there," she asked as we pulled into the dorm parking lot.

"Sure, what's the dress?" I asked.

She looked me up and down as we walked away from the car. "What you're wearing is fine. Things don't get too exciting until after eleven. I don't know about you, but my course load doesn't allow for much weeknight partying."

I was wearing my usual – jeans, stilettos, and a cute little shirt. I'd definitely have to do some shopping because most of the girls at school dressed much more casually than I had in the last two days. I didn't like the idea of dressing down just to fit in, but I'd rather not make a spectacle of myself. Kimber was dressed similarly but she was wearing flats. Not a bad choice since she was probably planning on walking from our class all the way back to our dorm building.

"What time do you want to go?" I asked.

She looked at her watch. "I only need ten minutes or so and I'll be ready."

"Okay. I'll meet you at the elevators in ten minutes then."

We continued to chat casually while we made our way to our rooms. She told me about the bar we were going to. You had to be twenty-one to get in, all the hot juniors and seniors hung out there, and it was the place-to-be on weekends. She thought about my age as an afterthought, but I already had that part figured out. One of my IDs said I was twenty-one.

For someone who claimed to avoid weeknight partying, Kimber sure did have a lot to drink. I matched her drink for drink and even I had a buzz. I stopped drinking and ate some chips and dip in hopes of sobering up before driving. Day two was a little early to start breaking Dad's rules.

After about an hour of Kimber and I getting to know each other and dancing for a while, we decided it was about time to go. Both of us had some reading to do. Dad would be proud, I didn't drive drunk.

She and I ran into each other again the next morning on our way to class. That damn smell was stronger than ever and all over her. Then… I saw him. Impossibly tall, broad shoulders, well muscled body, and long black hair. He walked past us and didn't look back. It was like my body was pulling me to him. Like gravity. Like a magnet. Something in me longed for him in a way I couldn't comprehend.

"See ya, Jake!" Kimber called to the mystery man.

"Later, Kim," he mumbled.

I grabbed her arm and we stopped on the steps outside as Mr. Hot and Sexy made his way through the parking lot looking less than peppy. "Who the fuck is that?" I asked in a hushed whisper.

"That's Jacob. Hot, huh? He's the one I told you about… the one that's unbelievable in the sack. You can borrow him if you want."

My head spun. Things just got really fucking complicated. And to add insult to injury, I still didn't have a face to go with my fantasies.

**A/N: I didn't go to UGA... Anything mentioned specifically (locations, building names, etc) are fictional. **


	5. Evasion

**A/N: Thanks so much to my betas at PTB, DeeDreamer and TwilightHeart21! They've been a big help. **

**I now have a banner for this story. The link is on my profile page, so check it out! **

**Here's the chapter you've all been waiting for.**

**Chapter 5 – ****Evasion**

**JPOV **

With Kimber back, I was starting to feel normal again. Well, as normal as I could be.

She came back the night before school started. As luck would have it, Kimber got to keep her old dorm – the single just two floors above me. She called me that same night and I ended up sleeping over. Apparently an old flame of hers really got to her before she came back and she needed some companionship. Holding her while she slept was a little awkward, but it was the least I could do. The girl was awesome. As an added bonus, I got a morning blow job. Definitely worth the awkwardness and sleeping on an impossibly tiny double single bed with another person… and getting busted by the R.A..

I had this strange feeling beginning a few days before school started. I couldn't figure out what it was. It felt like my heart was being tugged every which way. A normal person would go to the doctor and have an EKG done, but that wasn't exactly an option for me. Times like this, having Dr. Vamp's number would be convenient. The feeling wasn't exactly painful, but definitely uncomfortable. It seemed to come and go and it was definitely worse when I was at home.

I tried to blow it off. But when I went to visit Kimber that night, I smelled something inconceivably amazing. It smelled like heaven; sweet and floral and soft and definitely that of a female. I wanted to bury my face in whomever the smell belonged to and just breathe it in for days. Then when I was done memorizing the scent, I wanted to run my mouth all over the body of its owner and memorize the taste. It was like fucking heaven.

That pain in my chest seemed to be pulling me down the hall. _Fuck no. I will NOT imprint._

It was the only explanation that made sense. I'd seen it in my pack's mind. I knew what it felt like for them. Why hadn't it clicked before? The pain in my chest, and now I was absolutely mesmerized by a damn smell.

Kimber made it easier to not think about it. I did feel a little guilty about thinking of the scent while I fucked her, though. That was wrong. At least she would never know.

I told myself I'd avoid the scent and the pull in my chest at all costs. Maybe I could move to a different dorm. My mind kept fighting my heart. I didn't want to imprint, but part of me wondered if it would help me…if it would complete me the way it had the others.

But I didn't want to be stripped of my right to choose who I wanted to be in love with. Besides, this was fucking _college_. Not the place to fall in love and plan out Happily Ever After.

Kimber was insatiable the first few days back. We'd only gone a few weeks without seeing each other before she came back for good. Apparently it was a few weeks longer than she was able to handle going without dick. It wasn't a problem for me, though. Then one night she called me to come _help her study_ – translation: _I need to get laid_. The slight slur in her speech was promising. The girl was kinky when she was sober. Get a few drinks in her and she was a wild woman.

I smelled that heavenly scent in the hall as I made my way to Kimber's room. I was stunned when I smelled Kimber; she had Heaven's smell all over her. It was in her hair, on her clothes, everywhere. In the time that she and I had been hooking up, almost a year, I'd never fucked her as hard as I did that night. I fought the urge to kiss her more…and the urge to ask her who she'd been with and to take me to her.

The next morning was possibly the second most difficult moment of my life. I was running out the door for class when I came up behind Kimber and the sexiest thing I'd ever seen in my life standing next to her.

It was her. Heaven. In the flesh. I knew it was her because the closer I got, the more intense that feeling in my chest became.

I couldn't figure out what to do. At first, I could only stare. Her hair was sort of like Kimber's except browner; she was tall, her waist was narrow and it led down to perfectly curved hips. The small of her back was exposed and served as a nice little tease to what was the nicest ass I'd ever laid eyes on. _Focus you idiot_.

I shook my head and looked down at the ground. I practically ran past the pair and didn't look back. Kimber said something and I just mumbled back at her. Heaven smelled so fucking good in such close proximity.

Concentrating in class that day was _not_ possible. I was pretty convinced that this girl was my imprint. But did I want to imprint on her? I could avoid it easy enough. All I'd have to do is drop out of school and never look back. With it being so early in the semester, I could withdraw without it even affecting my GPA.

I skipped half the day and waited for Embry outside his dorm. I didn't want to talk to anyone about this, but I had to. And of all the options I had, Embry was the best suited. He never imprinted. He felt the same way I did about it.

He was completely shocked by what I told him. Shocked and without a single decent word of advice. He said to follow my heart. If I followed my heart, I'd let it lead me to her and imprint as soon as our eyes met. My mind didn't want to follow my heart.

The only good idea that came out of his mouth was that we should attend this big party at the Delta house the following night.

**NPOV**

Kimber and I were invited to some big party Friday night. I felt bad for abandoning Warren two nights in a row, but he seemed to understand. We got ready together in her room. It was fun.

We rifled through each others clothes and cosmetics. Well, it was mostly her rifling through my stuff since apparently I had the better hoard. I couldn't help but look at her while she was changing. She was a very sexual creature by nature and her body was a clear representation of this, down to her matching black thong and bra set. I was pretty sure I managed to look away before she caught my admiration, but I wasn't positive.

We walked into the party with our arms linked. In the short time I'd known her she had become very comfortable with subtle touches like this. I wasn't used to physical contact like that but didn't mind. Odd since she was so much warmer than I was used to, but nice. The warmth was comforting in a way.

Kimber seemed to know everyone. I recognized a few people from around campus but didn't know any of them well. I was thankful she didn't shun me so she could go talk to everyone else she knew. She introduced me to several people and I made small talk with them.

We were having a good time dancing and throwing back drinks. I was only slightly intoxicated when Mr. Hot and Sexy walked in with a friend. Alas, a face to match the fantasies. Dark skin, deep-set eyes, strong brow, high cheeks, and lips that I could see myself getting lost in. I instantly wanted him in so many ways. Ways that I should _never_ want a human. _What the fuck are you thinking?_

I dragged Kimber to the kitchen before she noticed he had entered. The last thing I needed was a face to face conversation with him, especially not with his fuck buddy at my side. But I wanted to talk to him…among other things.

As much as I was trying to avoid him, my eyes kept roaming the crowd in search of him. I just needed to see his face one more time…to really memorize it. I'd only caught a sideways glance when he'd entered. I needed more. The mind is such a confusing thing. Why must we want the things we can't have?

Kimber poured us a couple of really sugary drinks and shots. I took two for her one. She raised an eyebrow as I poured myself a second shot and tossed it back but otherwise didn't question me. I suppose she thought I was just trying to fit in or cope with nervousness or something. I couldn't tell her the truth – that it took at least three times as much to intoxicate me.

A couple of guys standing around the keg applauded me before we walked over to where a swarm of people were dancing to techno. It wasn't exactly my favorite kind of music, but it was better than being forced to listen to bubblegum pop garbage.

We started out dancing in front of each other but not touching, much like most of the girl pairs on the dance floor. Random guys started to come up behind us and moved with our bodies without even so much as asking if we wanted to dance with them. I tried to politely smile and tell them I wasn't interested, but quickly learned that kindness got you nowhere with drunk and persistent frat boys. I took notes from Kimber who was a bit more aggressive with her approach.

"You see that huge guy over there? The one who stands a head taller than everyone else? That's my boyfriend. He's dangerous," she said, giving random frat boy # 3 an evil glare.

I looked in the general direction she pointed and it was quite obvious she was referring to Mr. Hot and Sexy. He was the only one who stood that tall or could classified as huge. My heart skipped a beat as her words set in. I moved a little closer to her and continued to dance.

"I thought you guys were um…just friends or whatever?" I asked, hoping my faux indifference was convincing.

She looked at me like I'd just asked the stupidest question ever. "We are. I just said that to get doofus away from me. Hopefully he tells a friend. What's it to ya?" she asked lightly.

The alcohol was playing in my favor. Lying was easier when I felt like this. Under normal circumstances I'd get fidgety or be completely obvious when I was about to lie. "Nothing, just curious."

"I wasn't joking when I said you could borrow him, just so you know. I saw him seriously checking you out earlier. You're a catch. Don't expect a commitment or anything, though. He feels the same way I do."

I chuckled. "That makes three of us."

We continued to dance for a while and my mind got lost in thought. She saw him checking me out. _Yes!_

I stopped counting the number of shots I'd taken after the ninth. We were having so much fun. It was probably the most fun I'd ever had in my life. We seemed to draw a lot of attention and I soaked it up. Much like everyone around us, our dance steps took on a much more sexual vibe after a while.

Kimber's hands roamed all over my body but remained on top of my clothes. I started to notice things about her that I hadn't before. The way she smelled _so_ good, how soft her hair was, the way her shirt clung to her breasts, how smooth her skin was, and just how nice her ass was.

There was no mental battle. The part that usually stopped me from doing things like this was long gone. My back was to her chest and our bodies were grinding together at a much slower pace than the song that was playing called for. Everything was going in slow motion. Her arms wrapped around me and her hands softly ran across my stomach. The tips of her fingers kept creeping higher and higher up my exposed midriff. My hands came up and reached back to play in her hair. Her face was so close to my neck that I could feel her warm breath on my skin. I was completely lost in the heat of the moment.

Nothing important mattered…not that we were surrounded by people, not that she was human and this was entirely against the rules. Nothing.

Then her mouth started moving across my neck. It felt so warm and sultry and amazing and completely foreign. I'd never felt a human's lips anywhere on my body. Just as her hands were sliding up my shirt, someone brought us out of our trance.

"Kim! Hey, let's go get a shot!" Mr. Hot and Sexy's friend said.

She shot him a death glare. "The fuck's wrong with you, cock block?" she slurred.

He pulled her closer and whispered so low that I shouldn't have been able to hear… but I could. "I know she's hot and all, but you guys can't just fuck right here, right now. Damn, at least charge a cover or something. Come on, let's go outside. Bring your friend."

"Fine. Shot first damnit," she mumbled, grabbing my hand and pulling me with her toward the kitchen.

Kimber picked up two bright green shots from the counter and handed me one. Nothing in a shot glass ever tasted good, but these tasted particularly disgusting, like salt water mixed with sugar.

We followed the guy who interrupted us out to the balcony. It was dark but little twinkle lights were wrapped around everything. When Kimber sat down, she tried to pull me into her lap. I went willingly but a pair of strong arms stopped me and sat me in a chair beside her.

"Seriously Embry, what's your problem?"

My brain tuned out their little argument. The words jumbled together and made no sense. I was more interested in the dark silhouette leaning over the banister on the other side of the huge patio. I felt that magnetism thing again and the wind blew his scent in my direction. God, I wanted him something fierce. If only he would just turn around so I could see his face.

"Kimber," I said, tearing my eyes away from him to look at her.

She stopped arguing with the guy named Embry and turned to look at me. "Yeah?" Her tone was much different than it was just seconds ago. All bitterness was gone.

"That's your friend, right?" I whispered, pointing to him.

"Oh yeah. That's him." The lust in her tone when she spoke of him sort of bothered me. How could I feel possessive over someone I hadn't even met?

I watched him for a few minutes while Kimber and Embry talked to a couple of other people that had joined us at the table. The way his hair moved in the wind, the way his shoulders tugged at the fabric of his shirt, his thick biceps. _Please turn around_. I felt so detached from the rest of the universe. Like we were floating in our own little world. The only problem – he was there and I was here. _Too far_.

Without even making a conscious decision to do so, I stood up. My legs felt like jelly and if I had any sense I'd take off the stilettos I was wearing before attempting to walk with any amount of grace. What was worse, bare feet or falling down? It didn't matter, I couldn't even feel myself moving, but somehow I was. This was evident because he was getting closer to me though it didn't look like he was moving. Just the smell of him made me wet. Human or not, I _had_ to have him.

I stood beside him and leaned over the railing just as he was doing. I took a deep breath before speaking and my eyes rolled back into my head. _Damn, that smell_. I couldn't even think straight. I tried to speak but couldn't. He didn't even turn to look at me. Surely he wasn't so drunk that he didn't notice me standing just inches from his side? _Why aren't words coming out?_

"Hi," I managed to mumble. I craned my neck so I could see his face. Even with four inch heels he was still nearly a foot taller than me. _Too fucking gorgeous_.

He still didn't look at me. "Hey," he spoke just barely above a whisper. Maybe I shouldn't have tried to talk to him. Maybe I was making a complete drunken fool out of myself. What the fuck was I thinking? Of all the times to approach him, I chose to do it when I was so drunk I could barely walk.

"I'm Re… Ne…" I stammered. I looked away from his face hoping it'd make it easier to form coherent thoughts and complete sentences, but it didn't.

"Ness. I know. You're Kimber's friend." He sounded so disinterested it actually hurt my feelings.

I tried to take a deep, cleansing breath but was once again assaulted by that damn scent of his. I felt my legs shake and let more of my weight rest against the banister so I wouldn't fall. I must have looked like a complete idiot. I wanted to run as fast as I could into the woods. On the other hand, I wanted to tackle him to the ground and fuck his brains out.

Just when I was about to make a further fool of myself, I heard someone scream from behind us. I looked back to see Kimber's face pressed against the glass of the patio table in a way that couldn't have been comfortable or intentional. She was unconscious. Embry was shaking her and lightly slapping her face but she didn't respond. Jacob left my side immediately and went to Kimber. She wasn't moving or even grumbling. She was lifeless.

"Kim! KIMBER! Can you hear me? Blink your eyes or something. Move your hand. Is she breathing?" Jacob asked as he gently shook her.

Embry brought her face to his cheek. "It's shallow, but she's breathing. Heart rate sounds okay."

I was making my way to her as well when suddenly everything went black. I was fairly certain my eyes were open and I could definitely hear sounds but I couldn't move or see. I assumed the thud I heard was my body hitting the floor because I could faintly feel something hard against my face. It smelled like wood. Definitely the floor.

I was vaguely aware of a lot of yelling and hot arms around my body. I was able to think enough to realize I was in a car and I began to freak out, but I couldn't verbalize any of it. I couldn't even move. The hot arms came back. I tried not to think of what was happening to me. I was completely defenseless. I tried to fight but couldn't move my body at all. Instead, I thought of pleasant things…like how my meeting with Jacob _should_ have gone, how good the warm arms felt, how I could still smell him, how I would give anything to be in his bed and this all be over, his body all around me, burying my face in that long hair of his, moaning his name, kissing those perfect lips I'd barely gotten a chance to see.

My senses returned little by little. First, there was mental consciousness. _Where am I? How long had I slept? What the fuck happened?_ I listened carefully for a moment and heard two heartbeats plus my own. They were both very close to me. I took a deep breath through my nose and felt much better. No recognizable sexual scents, only the smell of Jacob and Kimber. I was pretty sure I was on Jacob's pillow because it smelled too damn good to belong to anyone else.

I finally opened my eyes and could barely see anything. It was pitch black. I went to get out of bed but stepped on what could only be a human. Jacob jerked up to a sitting position and looked at me startled before looking down at the floor.

"Hi," I mumbled, still feeling pretty out of it. "Can we talk?"

"Yeah," he groaned while stretching.

Holy fuck, he was shirtless._ Please don't put a shirt on. Please don't put a shirt on. _How was this guy so damn blessed? Then he stood. His basketball shorts hung low on his incredibly sexy pelvis. My eyes stared greedily. I didn't even care if he noticed. I looked down his legs and gave appreciation to his strong calves. I couldn't help but imagine what he'd look like hovering over my body while thrusting in and out.

He cleared his throat and I felt my face turn bright red. "You coming?"

_Almost_, I thought to myself jokingly. "Yeah."

**A/N: **

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	6. Tell me

**A/N: Big thanks to my betas at PTB- TwilightHeart21 and thalia_csiny! Also, thanks for all of the reviews! I really appreciate them! **

**Chapter 6 – Tell me**

**JPOV **

Heaven woke up way too damn early for a Saturday. Kimber was totally out of it, snoring loudly.

It was still hard to look at Ness, so I led the way to the elevator. I finally looked at her last night and just as I thought, I had imprinted. I wasn't sure how to feel about it. It was impossible to fight it. I was hers…whatever she was.

"Can I come to your room?" I asked once the elevator opened to the sixth floor.

Her lips curled into this smirk that made my dick twitch. "If you want to."

I had to fight the urge to tell her just how much I wanted to.

I followed behind her and tried not to stare at her ass while she walked. "Do you have a roommate?" I asked.

"She's gone for the weekend."

_Sweet_.

We entered and she flicked on her desk lamp then began to move the clothes that were scattered across the bed. I could watch her lean over that bed all damn day. I sat in the desk chair and stared. That fucking hair of hers falling everywhere drove me wild. The view from the chair provided a nice peek down her shirt.

_Fuck_.

Her breasts looked real and impossibly perfect. My mouth hung open as I imagined my tongue rolling all over her body.

She sat down casually on the bed and looked at me expectantly. "What happened last night?" she asked after I didn't speak.

_Her voice. Heaven...Respond you idiot! _"Apparently you and Kimber were given some GHB. No one messed with you guys, though. Me and a friend of mine brought you both back to my place and I slept on the floor."

"I really appreciate it. I remember not being able to move or speak and I lost consciousness a lot. It was really scary. Thanks for keeping us safe," she said quietly.

"Wow, most people can't remember anything from the whole night when they're on that stuff." I tried not to sound suspicious.

The girl wasn't normal. For starters, her scent was definitely not human, her heart raced even when she was asleep and GHB usually slowed your heart rate, her skin was much warmer than a typical human's, and somehow, her thoughts crept into my mind every time she touched me when I was carrying her.

_Definitely not normal_.

She laughed nervously. "I'd rather not remember anything."

"I…I need to ask you something. I need you to trust me," I said. She had no reason to trust me. I completely ignored her last night up until she hit the floor. If anything, I deserved to be slapped in the face for my behavior.

"You _did_ keep me from getting raped and murdered. I guess I can trust you a little."

Did she have any idea what she was doing to me with that smile and those eyes?

I moved to sit on the bed in front of her. She looked surprised but overall pleased by the action. I couldn't help but get lost in her deep brown eyes. They looked familiar somehow. Like I'd known them all my life. Every time I looked in them, my train of thought derailed. I shook my head and tried to regain focus.

"What…_are_ you?" I asked, my voice just above a whisper.

"A freshman." She scooted back from me a little.

I moved closer to her and placed my hand over her heart. "That's not what I mean."

She didn't fight the hand that rested on her body. "I'm fucking nervous, cut me some slack." Her eyes looked all around and her cheeks flushed. She was a terrible liar.

I placed her hand against my bare chest. "I'm not normal, Ness. Neither are you. You can tell me the truth." I tried to sound sincere and worthy of her trust. "You're…warm…like me."

Her eyes focused on the blanket beneath her. "I don't know what you're talking about," she breathed.

My eyes widened as images and words began to flood my mind. It was mostly a jumbled mixture of profanities, questions, and thoughts about us that I was never supposed to hear or see. If her thoughts last night hadn't confirmed it, she definitely just did – she wanted to fuck me. I was supposed to be whatever she wanted me to be, I could definitely handle being her fuck buddy if that's what she wanted.

I switched tactics. My hand cupped her face and I moved in closer. I brought my mouth to her ear and felt her shudder. "I think you do," I whispered.

I let my face stay there for a moment while I breathed in her heavenly aroma. I rested my forehead against her temple and waited for her to respond. My fingers ran through her hair on their own accord. I had no right to be touching her like this.

Then, I heard her. _Tell him. I want this. God, he smells good. No, he's human. I can't do this. The rules. Just turn your head and kiss him. NO! Push him away! Run! He can't know. But I want him. I've never wanted anyone so much. What the fuck is wrong with me? _

I took charge. I wasn't sure how she'd react, but I didn't care. I wanted her and a large part of her wanted me, too. I turned my head and pressed my mouth to hers. Whatever she was, it didn't matter. Her hand came up and gripped my hair while the other pulled me on top of her. Something else to add to the list of things different about her: She was _strong_.

My cock was instantly hard and pressing firmly against her thigh. Having her body against mine felt so _right_. Our mouths moved together as if they were one entity. She tasted so good even though the flavor was tainted with liquor. I smelled it when wetness pooled in her panties. She moaned when I pressed myself against her center roughly.

I heard her thoughts in my mind. _Fuck me. Give it to me. I want you. _

My instincts were taking over in a way I'd never experienced. I had to fight the urge to literally rip her clothes off and give her exactly what she was begging for.

_Not like this. This isn't right. This is wrong. She's still fucked up. Hell, I am too. _

I forced myself off of her and tried to catch my breath. I couldn't look at her without wanting her even more. She was panting and had this fire burning in her eyes.

"Please, just tell me," I asked.

The devilish smile on her face made it so much harder to keep from ravaging her. "If I tell you, will you give me what I want?" she asked, straddling my lap and running her mouth and teeth along my neck.

At this point, she didn't have to tell me a damn thing and I'd give her anything in the world. I might as well play along. "Yes," I grunted.

She began to trail kisses down my chest and stomach. "And you'll tell me what you are?" she asked.

That was easy. I could tell her everything. "Yes," I said through a stifled moan as her mouth kissed and nipped my pelvis.

She pulled my shorts off faster than any human ever could and immediately began to roll her tongue around my head.

"You have to promise me something." She looked up at me while she playfully slid her tongue up and down my length. _Too sexy_.

"Anything." And I did mean _anything_.

She took my entire length into her mouth – something Kimber couldn't dream of doing – then came back up, swirling her tongue around my head before removing it from her mouth. "You can't tell anyone."

"I won't. I promise," I breathed as she took me back into her mouth.

She released my cock and straddled my lap again, bringing her face to mine. She fisted my hair in both hands and breathed my scent in. "If you do, I'll have to kill you. And don't think for a second that I won't or can't." Her hips grinded against my body.

"I promise."

I was putty in her hands. I'd say anything to get her attention back to my dick.

"And you have to have a three way with me and Kimber."

"Anything," I replied, though I didn't entirely mean it. I wasn't sure if I could even fuck Kimber now. It wouldn't surprise me if my body completely stopped reacting to Kimber in any way.

She pushed my back against the bed and stood above me. I stared shamelessly while she made a show of taking her clothes off. The moment she flung her sexy little panties across the room, I sat up and tasted her glistening lips. _So fucking sweet and delicious_.

She moaned over and over while I flicked her swollen clit.

Her hands grasped my face and suddenly I felt everything she did. It didn't take thirty seconds for her to orgasm. Feeling hers almost brought me to my own.

"Fuck me," she moaned while I sucked her juices into my mouth.

"Tell me," I said, stopping her hips from coming down on top of my cock.

"I will once you get inside me."

I caved and let her slide down my shaft. I watched her face contort and her eyes roll back. She felt unbelievable – hot and slick and so _right_.

I thrusted deeper into her body, filling her with all of me. "Now," I commanded. The Alpha voice came through, though it wasn't intentional.

"I'm immortal," she said between moans. Damn, we weren't even moving and she was moaning over and over.

I felt it, too. Just the connection of our bodies felt better than any orgasm I'd ever had. My brain was in a fog and the only thing that existed was us and this moment.

"I guessed…that much," I breathed, sliding in and out of her slowly. I wasn't sure I could handle much more than that without blowing my load. Not a good way to start any sort of sexual relationship.

She brought her mouth to mine and kissed me deeply. Our bodies moved together in perfect synchronization. Her hands gripped my face firmly. I wasn't the only one who was on the brink of exploding. I grasped her hips and stopped her from moving. I'd be damned if she was going to get off before telling me.

"That doesn't answer my question," I said hoarsely.

Her expression of lust and euphoria shifted to one of anxiety. She kissed me again, almost lovingly. "I don't hurt people. Do you really need to know more?" Her eyes stared into the depths of my soul.

"I have to know," I replied. I fought against my mouth as it tried to reattach to hers.

Her body tensed and I could see the arousal in her face lessen by the millisecond. _Just get it over with. You said you'd tell him so do it. He's going to freak. What have I done? Lie. Okay, lie. I can do that._ Just as I could feel her pleasure before, I could feel her anxiety now…and hear her thoughts.

"Please don't lie," I pleaded.

She jerked her hands off my body and rolled her eyes. She pulled herself off my lap quickly and got under the blanket.

"I'm sorry…I…I can't," she whispered.

This girl was driving me insane on so many levels. I was lost somewhere between pissed off, turned on, and lovesick. I leaned over her and turned her face to mine.

"Please?" I asked before kissing her lips tenderly. She kissed me back, a promising gesture.

"You shouldn't be here," she breathed against my lips.

I kissed her again softly. "Do you want me to leave?"

She sighed. "What are you _doing_ to me?" Her eyes finally opened and she looked at me pleadingly, like she was confused and begging for an answer.

"I don't know what you mean." I kissed her once more, savoring the taste of her lips.

"I can't even…think…" she broke off with a sigh.

"Just go with it," I whispered.

If she was feeling half of what I was feeling, there was no wonder why her thoughts were lost. My mouth placed hot kisses down her jaw and neck. I couldn't stop myself. Her breathing picked up and I was hard again. She was panting before my lips passed her collarbone.

Then there was cold air. She threw me against the thick wooden door. I felt the wood bow a little but it didn't break.

"You know, you didn't have to drug me. I would have fucked you sober, you asshole," she said sourly, grabbing me by my throat and holding me to the door. "I wasn't joking when I said I could fucking kill you. Do you _want_ to die?"

I shook my head. I could barely breathe, much less speak.

"What the fuck did you give me?" she screamed.

Her grip on my throat loosened minutely. "Noth—"

It tightened again. "Don't lie to me!"

Her grasp constricted to the point where it felt like my head might pop off. I grabbed her wrist and forced her hand away from my throat. "I'm not fucking lying!"

Both her hands came back up. I wasn't sure if she was going to choke me again or what she was going to do, but I wasn't letting it happen.

"Ever think maybe you're not the strongest person on campus?" I asked scornfully, easily stopping her hands in their tracks.

"Get out," she growled.

"Tell me what you are," I said, using the full force of the Alpha. I knew it had at least some effect on her, being my imprint. We were bound to each other now whether we wanted it or not.

She winced. "Don't make me scream," she hissed.

"Oh, I'd love to make you scream…maybe under more friendly circumstances."

"The R.A. is three doors down. I'll scream rape and your ass will be history."

"Yeah, and I'd just love to see the results of the physical they'll give you."

"Get out!"

"Stop it!" I roared. Her body tensed and she stepped away from me.

She ran to the bed and started crying. I took the opportunity to put my shorts back on. "What are you doing to me?" she said between sobs. "Just tell me what you gave me."

I stood firm in front of the door, but my heart was pulling me to her, demanding I console her. "I already told you I didn't drug you. I'm not telling you anything until you tell me what the fuck you are." I tried to sound kind but wasn't doing too well.

"Please just go," she whispered.

I didn't reply. I couldn't fight her anymore. I walked out and closed the door behind me. I couldn't leave, though. I just stood there in front of her closed door, listening to her cry, to the sound of her abnormal heartbeat, smelling her all over me. Who knew Heaven could be such a bitch…

"I know you're out there," she mumbled.

"Fine," I growled under my breath as I walked away.

Her sobs picked up as I got farther. I wanted to hold her and make it all better. But at the same time, I wanted to slap her. I'd never hit a female, no matter what she did to me, but I'd never wanted to as much as I did right then.

**A/N: Hope no one is offended by Jacob's last little statement. Every male feels like that from time to time just as every female does. We've all been so pissed at someone that we want to hit them, doesn't mean we will. **


	7. Apologies & Truths

**A/N: Thanks to my PTB betas, EllieCC and AGirlReckoning, for getting me through this chapter! **

**We left off with hellcat Ness throwing Jacob out of her dorm in the wee hours of Saturday morning after abruptly ending their first round of imprint sex. She's confused as hell and he's pissed about her accusations. **

**Chapter 7 – Apologies & Truths**

**NPOV **

I woke up and immediately wished it was all a dream. Everything went from looking good to bad, to impossibly worse. I forced my eyes open and appraised the damage to my room. The door survived and nothing was broken. Good. The first thing I saw in my dresser, I put on, grabbed the remote, and curled into my blankets. I turned on the first movie I came across, a cheesy horror movie with bad graphics. I tried to focus on it but my thoughts kept wandering. My phone rang several times, but it was on the other side of the room – much farther than I was willing to move at the moment.

The movie didn't help much. I was wrong on so many levels. I shouldn't have allowed myself to get that drunk, I shouldn't have pursued a human, and I sure as hell shouldn't have told him I was immortal. I _definitely_ shouldn't have threatened to scream rape. The guy practically saved my life, and I treated him so terribly. As much as I wished I could blame my actions on alcohol, I couldn't. The alcohol in my system had been almost gone when I'd woken up.

One thing was for sure, though. I was extremely confused. He had a grip on me like I'd never felt. When I looked into his eyes, there was so much I didn't understand. I wanted to pretend he'd drugged me, but I knew better. I definitely felt intoxicated in some unnatural way, but it wasn't alcohol- or drug-induced. It was something else…something bigger…stronger.

When he was inside me, I felt something unexplainable. It was like a constant orgasm. Plus the heat from his body was ridiculously arousing. All this time I thought cold felt good, heat was _definitely_ better. Cold sent spine tingling chills through my body, made my nipples stand erect…heat made my body burn with a desire I couldn't even fathom.

Before my thoughts could venture too far into fantasy, there was a loud knock on my door. _Great_. I stood in front of itfor a moment, willing the person to leave.

"Renesmee, let me in," Warren whispered.

I immediately flung it open. He couldn't be left in the hall for so many reasons, the most important of which was that he was very new to not killing humans and avoided them at all costs. I knew he'd be able to smell the remains of sex in the air, as well as Jacob's scent, but I couldn't leave him out in the hall. It was too dangerous.

He was on me as soon as the door closed, but not in a sexual way. He lifted me into his arms and embraced me tightly.

"I was so worried about you. Where have you been? I've been calling. I came by late last night and you weren't home yet. I saw your car over at that Delta house but you weren't there. God, I was so worried, I almost called your dad."

I gasped. "Warren, please don't _ever_ call my dad unless you are absolutely certain something is wrong."

He stood me in front of him and held my face in his hands. "Renesmee, I _really_ thought something was wrong. You were nowhere to be found. I guess now I know you actually have a life." He sounded a little jealous.

I saw it in his face the moment he registered the smell of sex in the air. He went from happy I was alive to looking like I'd broken him into pieces. He stepped away from me and stared at the floor.

"I'm sorry," I said, closing the distance between us. He stepped back when I tried to touch him. _What have I done?_

"It's okay. I'm fine with it. Really." His words and his body language didn't match up.

"I don't know what to say. Honestly, I don't even know how it happened." I wrapped my arms around my torso, wishing I could crawl into someplace dark and never come out.

He jerked his head up and finally looked at me. "What do you mean? Did someone drug you or something? I'll kill them, I swear—"

"No, that's not what I meant." He didn't step away when I came closer this time. "Well, technically, _someone_ did…but…what happened…it wasn't that. I was drunk…it's so confusing. I just don't understand how I let it happen." My words spewed out of my mouth erratically, but it was the truth. I still couldn't figure it out.

"Well at least it wasn't a human." Warren physically relaxed a little.

"What do you mean? What is he? How'd you know that?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I don't know. The smell definitely isn't human. I don't even know how you tolerated being around him. He smells disgusting."

I didn't comment. I'd hurt him enough already. Jacob smelled like the best thing in the world to me, but apparently Warren didn't agree.

"Did you walk here?" I asked, trying desperately to change the subject.

"Most of the way. I brought your car back. Oh, I've got some bad news."

_Oh, God, how could this day get worse?_

"Someone jacked your stereo and speakers," he finished.

I rolled my eyes and sighed. "Wonderful. Emmett and Rosalie gave me all that stuff."

At least my car was still intact. I could replace the stereo and speakers with the similar stuff and they'd never know the difference. Karma was already starting to come back around on me for being such a royal bitch last night.

"I'm really, _really_ sorry, but I need some time alone right now. Can we hang out tomorrow? I don't feel too good. Someone slipped me GHB last night and I've been out of it all day."

It was obvious he wasn't buying it. The fact that I was a terrible liar didn't help matters at all. He looked at me, and I could practically feel the pain I'd inflicted.

"I can take care of you if you're not feeling well," he murmured, tucking my hair behind my ear.

I was so conflicted and confused. I cared greatly for Warren; the last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt him. I owed him so much more than I could ever give. He was a great friend, and until just a few hours ago, I thought he was an amazing lover. I knew he loved me and wanted to commit himself to me for some crazy reason. He wanted to hold me and make me feel better. He wanted to kiss me the way I'd kissed Jacob last night…and _why_ I kissed him like that I still wasn't sure. Warren had listened to me bitch and moan, he dealt with my raging PMS, he even moved all the way across the country for me. To hell with my wants, I owed this to him. I couldn't break his heart, especially when I didn't even know what I was feeling.

"You're welcome to stay, but you'll be bored," I said, backing into my bed and slipping under the covers.

He grinned and his mood seemed to pick up a little. "Impossible."

I pulled him beside me and curled against his body. Cold was nothing like hot. We watched a few movies with minimal conversation. Warren didn't even try to love on me the way he did sometimes when I allowed myself to cuddle up to him like that.

"Renesmee?" he said. I looked up to meet his amber gaze. "Did he hurt you?"

Hurt wasn't exactly the word for it. If I'd had any time to think about it, I might have had a better understanding of exactly how I felt, but at the time, I just felt confused and angry with myself. I couldn't explain all that to Warren, though.

"Not really. Now don't go running after him or anything…it didn't go well. He didn't hurt me, though." I turned back to the television, hoping to end the conversation at that. "I'd rather not talk about it."

"That's fine." He nuzzled my hair with his face but didn't kiss it. I was a cruel, evil person for allowing him to love me like this with nothing to give back.

Once the next movie came on, I allowed my thoughts to drift to Jacob. I tried and tried to understand what was going on in my head, but I couldn't. I'd never felt this way before. I couldn't even define it. I found myself wondering where he was, what he was doing, if he was thinking about me…then wondering why in the hell I even cared. Cuddling against Warren only hindered me from coming to any sort of conclusion.

"I'm not trying to kick you out or anything, but my roommate said she'd be back either tonight or early tomorrow." I knew she wouldn't be back until tomorrow around nine in the morning, but I really wanted to be alone. Half-truths were easier to get away with than full blown lies.

He hopped up. "That's cool. I've got a craving for some coyote anyway." He playfully kissed my cheek before walking to the door.

"You don't have to leave right this minute, silly."

"I've got some stuff to do, too. See ya, babe."

I laughed lightly and tried not to think about what other stuff he could possibly have to do besides hunt. "Later."

My mind immediately drifted back to Jacob. Just thinking his name gave me this strange yet satisfying feeling in my gut. Jacob…Jacob…

The anger was gone now. Last night didn't seem to matter. It didn't make sense, but it didn't matter. I wanted him in ways I didn't understand. I wanted to see him. I wanted him to want me. I wanted to be nice to him. So, I decided to apologize for being so cruel last night.

I would definitely need to shower first. The smell of cigarettes, booze, and Warren was all over me. _If only I could get rid of those smells without washing away Jacob's scent_.

The bathroom was full of girls getting ready to go out for the night. I couldn't believe I lay around _all day_. I scrubbed my body and hair thoroughly then slipped my robe on and headed back to my room to get ready for my visit with Jacob. I wasn't even sure if I'd see him. Since it was a Saturday night, he probably had plans or something. I had to at least try to see him, though.

The first thing I did was scatter all my make-up across the bed. Would he prefer less make up or more? Curly hair or straight? I rolled my eyes at myself for being so ridiculous and went with my usual – if he didn't like me for who I really was, then he wasn't worth it.

Or was he?

I played up my eyes with shadow and mascara then applied a soft pink lip gloss. I didn't want to come off as being slutty – since I probably didn't make a good impression last night – so I chose a conservative maxi dress with flat sandals. Finally, I ran some mousse through my mostly-dry waves and took a final look in the mirror. Not too slutty, not too virginal. Perfect.

Just as I was walking out the door to leave, I ran straight into Jacob. He let himself in without so much as asking for permission or saying hello. He immediately began looking around my room, behind the door and under the bed.

"Did you forget something?" I asked as kindly as I could, attempting to mask the confusion in my voice.

"I know this sounds crazy, but I need you to come with me." He looked afraid, like something was terribly wrong. I got lost in his deep brown eyes for a moment and forgot he was speaking to me. "It's important. _Please_."

Somehow I couldn't say no to him. He grabbed my hand and pulled me out the door, leading me to the stairwell. He picked me up and carried me down six flights of stairs at a pace that I could match if I were using my full strength. _Definitely not human_. He put me down and continued to drag me by the hand at a brisk walk through the parking lot to what I assumed was his car.

"I promise I'm not going to hurt you. Just trust me," he said, opening the passenger door.

"I trust you," I murmured. I wasn't sure why, but I did.

We rode in silence for several minutes before I built up the courage to speak.

"I'm sorry I choked you and said I'd file rape charges against you. I didn't mean it."

"I'm sorry I acted like such an asshole, and I swear I didn't drug you." His voice was hard from the stress of the situation– which I still was clueless as to the source of – but I could tell he was trying to be gentle and polite.

"I knew you didn't."

He took his hand off the gear shifter and placed it on my thigh – an unexpected but _definitely_ welcome gesture.

"Can you tell me what we're running from?" I asked shyly.

He jerked the car into the emergency lane and put it in park. He turned to face me, and I felt my body melt into the floorboard. "I don't know what you are or how much you know, but don't freak out, okay? You're safe with me."

"Okay." I nodded for him to continue.

He swallowed hard. "I…I don't know how to explain this to you. I followed the scent of a vampire to your room. The scent was all over the place. My friend is going after it as we speak. You'll never have to worry about it again. I know it might sound crazy, but it's true."

I froze. I couldn't move or speak. _Warren_.

"Ness, it's okay. We'll take care of it," he said soothingly.

"_NO_!" I shouted, finally snapping out of my state of shock. "I know him! He's my best friend! Don't hurt him!"

His face turned to a cold mask. "A vampire is a vampire. We can't let him run around killing students just because he's your friend."

I glared at him. "Warren doesn't hurt people! He's not like that!" I shouted, still panicking that someone out there was going after Warren with intentions of killing him.

Jacob sighed, rolled his eyes, and opened his car door. "Stay put. I'll be right back."

Again, I couldn't disobey him. I sat in the car and watched from my window as he jogged into the woods beside the highway. He ran so far I couldn't see him anymore. Less than two minutes later, he was running back with a look of disgust on his face. He got in and started driving again.

"Can you please tell me _why_ you are best friends with a _vampire_?" His voice was malicious, and his hands gripped the wheel tightly.

I huffed and took his hand in mine. "Promise you won't hurt me?" I asked quietly.

"I could never hurt you," he said in the most sincere tone. The crease in his brow faded, and he seemed to be calm again.

I breathed in his scent for what I hoped wouldn't be the last time. "I'm half human…" I paused for a long moment. He nodded slowly for me to continue. _God, just say it_. "And half vampire." The words stumbled out of my mouth.

"_WHAT_?" he roared. He jerked the car back into the emergency lane and got out. His body was trembling. I got out and started to walk toward him. "Stay back!" he shouted. I stopped where I was, unable to move any farther. "WHY?" he shouted to the sky. "What the fuck did I do?" He continued to scream obscenities and questions to the heavens, still shuddering and pacing around. He ran into the woods, and I followed behind him.

I didn't understand why, but his apparent hatred for vampires, and me by extension, hurt to the core.

**A/N: I'd love to hear your opinion of this chapter. Did Jacob finding out what Ness is go as you expected? And poor, poor Warren… **

**I'm considering starting each chapter with a little note at the top mentioning where the last chapter left off (like I did in this one). Is that something you'd like? I know I usually have to go back to the previous chapter for a little refresher before reading the new one since I'm reading like 8 WIPs lol. Let me know. **

**The next chapter has been sent over to be beta'ed and I'll have it posted as soon as I get it back! :-)**


	8. Undeniable

**Chapter 8 – Undeniable**

**A/N: The title to this chapter is also the name of a kickass Jacob/Nessie fic by IndependenceIndividuality on FFnet. It's the Jacob POV version of her main fic, **_**Hands on Me**_**. If you're a J/N addict like myself, it's a must read. Check it out **_**after**_**you finish this chapter. **

**Sorry for the delay in posting. Apparently there was a little mix up in Project Team Beta-land. Thanks to my PTB betas, Amore and DeeDreamer! **

**JPOV **

_Embry, please phase back. I really fucking need to be alone right now_, I practically shouted at him with my thoughts. I couldn't help it, my anger and frustration was uncontrollable.

_Done_, he replied, and then he was gone.

Of all the females in the world, why in the hell did I imprint on my natural enemy? Was my life not screwed up enough as it were? Sure I had all those lovesick feelings of undying devotion that came with imprinting, but I still didn't understand it. What was I supposed to do if she killed humans as a means of survival? I couldn't imagine killing her for it. That would be impossible.

I could hear her running behind me. I could practically feel every movement she made in my heart. I ran as far as I could, but it wasn't far enough. We were still near campus, so wooded areas were limited. She approached me slowly once I stopped. I phased back right in front of her, not caring if I scared her in the process.

"Do you kill people?" I shouted.

"No! Never. I eat regular food most of the time, sometimes animals. Never humans, I swear! I told you last night I don't hurt people." She was practically pleading with me. The look in her eyes nearly brought me to my knees. How could I be so harsh to this beautiful creature?

I snatched my shorts on and started walking toward the car. Her hand reached out and touched my arm in a half-hearted attempt to stop me. "Come on, I'll take you back," I mumbled.

She didn't speak or move. I turned back to look at her. She looked so confused and hurt and worried…and beautiful. I couldn't continue to be mean to her. I couldn't command her to come with me like I had commanded her to stay earlier. Her eyes stared into mine, burning right through to my soul. I would never get used to the way I felt when we looked into each other's eyes. It made my body turn to mush, made my heart speed up…made me forget why I was angry to begin with. She was my enemy, and now the person my soul belonged to.

None of the endless questions streaming through my mind mattered. Not the whys or the hows or the one question that seemed to be screaming in the forefront – can imprinting be reversed? She was all that mattered.

Neither of us spoke for a long moment.

"I'm sorry," I whispered.

She gnawed her perfect pink lip nervously as I finally approached her. My hands came up to rest on her arms. I wanted so badly to pull her against my chest and hold her, but I didn't. I looked down at her; she was staring at the ground. My hand came to her face and tilted it up to me. She bored into my eyes from beneath thick lashes. I pressed my lips together firmly and fought against my body's burning desire to kiss her.

My heart pounded inside my chest. It felt like something was literally pulling me closer to her, forcing us together. I didn't want to force myself on her. How could she want me after everything that just happened? Why was she even letting me touch her? My head was swimming in a pool of everything that was essential to her…her scent, her eyes, the heat emanating between our bodies.

She sighed, pulling me out of my daze.

"What are you _doing_ to me?" she breathed. _Does she feel it, too?_ "Is this like…your power or something?" she said in a hushed voice, stumbling over the words.

I felt my face moving closer and closer to hers though I'd never made the conscious decision to do so. She asked me a question – a very important one at that. I was supposed to be coming up with a reply, not kissing her. Gravity won the battle and our lips pressed together tenderly. _Fucking heaven_.

Our mouths moved in harmony. It wasn't like last night's lusty, half drunk kisses. This was so much more. My hands left her arms and wrapped around her waist. Our breathing was labored and we both gasped for air between warm, passionate kisses. She finally let her hands move. One wrapped around my neck. The other hand touched my face ever so lightly.

Less than a second later, my mind was filled with emotions and sensations that weren't my own. _Confusion. Desire. Acceptance...Love_. It was also clear that she felt the same detachment from the world that I did, like we were floating in our own realm and nothing else was there except us and this strange yet amazing connection we shared.

She took my lower lip into her mouth and sucked at it gently. Our mouths parted and the kisses became more urgent and hot, less tender. Like my mouth had before, my hands felt like they had a mind of their own and urged to rake over her soft, warm body. _Not now. Not like this._ Her pulling at my hair wasn't helping matters.

Somehow, I tore my lips from hers. My forehead rested against the top of her head. We were both breathing heavily and not speaking. Her hands rested on my chest, mine on the small of her back. _What is he...doing to me? How is this…happening? This feels so…so right. Why did he stop? Why don't I want him to stop? What's going on with me?_ Her thoughts became more coherent the more she questioned herself.

I wanted to tell her to just go with it, but last time I did that she accused me of drugging her. Without thinking, I cupped her face and started kissing her again, slowly this time. Her fingers lightly ran all over my torso and I growled against her mouth._ Just take me. I'm his. I need him._ My hand on her face tangled into her hair. She pressed her body against mine and I nearly ripped her clothes off right then and there. _So warm and soft. Much better than cold…better than Warren…_

I instantly pulled away from her and stepped back. Had she actually hooked up with a vampire? My still-fighting-against-the-imprint side screamed, _PARTY FOUL! Sloppy seconds from a vamp!_

I had no right to be upset with her for anything she'd ever done, even if it was just a couple of hours ago. She wasn't mine. Not officially at least, no matter what her thoughts may have unknowingly told me. But part of me couldn't even look at her. I had to know the truth. Now.

"You've slept with the vamp?" I asked, trying hard not to sound completely disgusted.

She stared at the ground for a moment then looked up at me. "Why do you care?" she asked quietly. I thought she'd be bitter and snappy, but she wasn't. "I don't even know you. Warren's the only real friend I've had in my entire life…" she trailed off, her gaze returned to the ground.

There were too many things I wanted to say. We were standing in the middle of the woods. This wasn't the place for a serious discussion.

"Do you like Chinese takeout?" I asked, stepping back toward her. I took her hand in mine and she didn't resist.

"Yeah, it's alright."

She still wasn't looking at me. I gently tilted her face up to mine by her chin. "Can we go back to your place and order some? Maybe talk for a while?" I asked in a low voice.

"I'm half vampire…which is apparently disgusting. Top it off; the only person I've ever fucked is a full blown vampire. Well, until last night anyway. Why do you want to hang out with _me_?" she said condescendingly. "Why are you doing this? What do you want from me?" Her brows knitted together in confusion as tears began to fall from her eyes. I wiped them away and just stared at her. I wanted to punch myself for making her cry.

"I'm really sorry. Can we just talk?"

"Yeah, let's just go," she mumbled, turning away from me and walking toward the car.

The ride back was completely silent. Ness stared out the window the entire time. There was no point in trying to make small talk. I was saving everything I had to say for when we got back, and could sit down face to face and talk like adults. I did call and order our food when we got close. When I asked what she wanted, she just mumbled "Whatever you're having." So I did just that and ordered her one of everything I ordered. It would have been enough food for six people.

If she was trying to drive me insane, she was doing a fantastic job. As soon as her dorm door was shut, she pulled some pajamas from her dresser and began to undress right in front of me. I was sort of disappointed she'd faced the other way but at least I had a nice view of her backside for the half second it took her to change. I couldn't help but wonder if she always wore such sexy underwear or if it was for her previous visitor. I cringed at the thought and prayed she always wore shit like that.

The food arrived before we could get settled in and the awkward silence between us still persisted. She paid the delivery guy before I had a chance to. She draped a sheet over her bed and patted the side of the bed across from her, inviting me to join her and the two massive bags of food. I pulled my wallet out to pay her back for the meal, but she wouldn't have it.

"Keep it."

"No, this was my idea and there's no way you're going to eat all this," I said, tossing a $50 bill onto her side of the makeshift table cloth.

She tossed it back. "My dad's an ass. Let him pay for this. Seriously."

I figured this was a good way to get the ball rolling, so I went with it. "Your dad's an ass? What'd he do?"

"I told you I've only ever had one friend in my entire life…and I met him after I ran away from home. I wasn't joking. I wasn't allowed to have friends growing up," she said, picking through the bags until finally deciding on a carton of shrimp fried rice and an eggroll. "That's one reason. But enough about me, let's talk about you," she said jokingly. She was actually joking. Maybe this wouldn't go terribly.

I wanted to know more about her, but there was a lot that needed to be explained on my part. "First, let's make a deal to stay cool. No getting pissed off, no screaming. Just us talking. If you hate me when it's all said and done, that's fine. You never have to speak to me again." _Please don't let that be the case_.

"Deal," she replied. She looked at me expectantly, waiting for me to begin.

"You've asked a lot of questions. I've heard some of the ones you may not have intended for me to hear." I paused and took a deep breath. "Ness, I'm a shape-shifter."

She looked confused. "Not a werewolf?"

"Right. What I do, it's a family thing." I continued on, telling her the just of our history and reason for existing while she picked at her rice.

She looked around shyly. "So, what does that have to do with us?" The underlying question was clear – she wanted to know why she felt the way she did toward me. _Here comes the tough part. _

"I'm no good at this kind of stuff. It's so complicated." I took the last bite of my rice and sat the container aside. She quickly cleaned up the mess and returned to the bed before I even had a chance to figure out what I was about to say.

She laid her head in my lap and looked up at me. _Heaven_. "Jacob, tell me why I can't stay away from you…why I can't get you out of my head…why even now I can't help but want to be near you," she murmured.

I got lost again. My fingertips brushed across her face and lips lightly. She sighed and closed her eyes for a moment before sitting up in front of me. My fingers still caressed her cheek while I continued to lose myself in her. _There's something I'm supposed to be saying right now…_

"Why?" she whispered.

My face crept closer to hers until our lips were less than an inch apart and our noses were almost touching. "Because we're soul mates," I breathed. "True soul mates in every way."

I waited for her to respond. After a few moments, her breathing and heart sped slightly and she finally whispered, "I don't…I don't understand it but I…I think I'm…in love with you," she whispered.

I let myself go. My lips crashed into hers, and I kissed her with every ounce of love and desire I had. She pulled me on top of her as she fell back against the bed. Our mouths and tongues moved together fluidly. Our hands explored each other's bodies.

"Ness, I'm sorry for all the times I've been so mean to you. Please, _please_ forgive me," I pleaded, breaking away before things went too far.

"I forgive you." She kissed me again. "Will you forgive me?"

"Yes," I murmured against her lips. "Ness…I…" I trailed off, kissing her fervently in an attempt to buy myself the time it'd take to work up the balls to say what I really wanted to say. "I love you."

She pulled my face back to hers and continued the kiss I'd broken away from. I was slightly disappointed that she didn't respond, until her thoughts flowed freely into my mind. _I'm yours. My heart belongs to you. I love you._

I pulled my lips from hers. "Say it," I said softly. "I need to hear you say it. Out loud."

"Jacob, I…I love you. I've never felt this way before. I didn't even know what it was." She stopped talking and kissed me again, tenderly this time. "I love you," she murmured against my lips. My heart exploded. Life couldn't get better than this.

"I love you, Ness," I whispered back.

She wiggled beneath me for a moment then her shirt and bra were off. Her skin pressed against my already bare chest. I could feel her taut nipples and the exact shape of those perfect breasts. I kissed her even deeper and she moved her center to press against my erection. Her hands slid all over my skin and I could feel everything she felt…the lust, the desire, and best of all, the love. _Please, Jacob. Make love to me._

She didn't have to tell me twice. My mouth moved from her lips, slowly and lightly down her neck, over her chest, until finally reaching her breasts. I placed light, open-mouthed kisses all over each of them before taking one of her nipples into my mouth. She sighed again and again as I nipped and flicked.

"Touch me," she pleaded with a stifled moan.

My hand slid down her smooth stomach and gently pulled her tiny shorts off. I could smell her arousal before, but with the shorts gone it was even more potent. My erection was begging to slip inside. Over the outside of her saturated panties, I took a moment to pay special attention to her clit. I wanted – no, I _needed_ to taste. My mouth moved slowly down her stomach, placing hot kisses all over it. She moaned and writhed while I teased her.

Ness's impatience with me grew and she took matters into her own hands, ripping off her panties so there was nothing to block my fingers from having full access to her. I took a second to admire the beauty of her sex – perfectly trimmed with just a little line of hair at the top.

"Please," she begged.

I let one finger dip inside her body. She immediately responded with a low moan. I brought my face down and flicked her clit with my tongue. Her legs shook in response. Just like the night before, she orgasmed in seconds. I wondered if it was an imprint thing or a Ness thing. I'd gone down on Kimber tons of times and never once did she respond like this.

"Jacob, I need you inside me," Ness breathed between moans.

I sat up and jerked my shorts off. Her mouth wrapped around my length before I even realized she was coming toward me. She sucked and bobbed like something straight out of an adult film, staring up at me through her thick lashes the entire time. _Fuck_.

Her fingernails came up and stroked my balls lightly, sending a fresh jolt of lust through my body. After a few minutes of the best damn blow job a guy could imagine, she pulled away from my body and laid back. I missed her mouth already, but wanted her pussy even more.

She played with herself and watched me as I stared at her in awe. She was the sexiest thing _ever_. Her free hand grabbed my arm and she pulled me on top of her. Our mouths instantly collided and moved together in heated desire. Her hand wrapped around my cock and she flicked my head against her sensitive nub, moaning and panting in pleasure. Her warm pussy lips against my cock made me groan, too. She felt so damn perfect, like we were made for each other.

The moment she slid me inside her, it felt like my world was complete. Everything felt so intense. Her lips parted from mine. We were both gasping for air.

"Make love to me, Jacob," she said softly. The way my name rolled off her tongue was nothing short of gratifying.

I began to move in and out of her body slowly. She took every inch of me. A perfect fit. My lips returned to hers. We shared tender, passionate kiss after kiss. My fingers wound into her soft hair. Hers moved from my hair to my back and biceps, gently squeezing and pulling. Our moans were muffled by our kisses, but the neighbors probably still heard us.

Ness shared all three of her orgasms with me through touch. I felt her fourth one coming and decided to finally allow myself release. My speed increased and her moans against my mouth got even louder. Her breathing sped to the point where she had to break away from our kiss. She panted and moaned while I let out a few grunts. My cock swelled and throbbed inside her body, the beginnings of my load shooting into her.

The proclamations of love that poured from her mouth intensified my orgasm. She let out a loud moan against my mouth as her climax peaked at the same time as mine.

I laid beside her and pulled her with me, never letting our bodies detach. My hands roamed all over her sweat-covered body, taking mental notes of every curve and dip, memorizing every inch. We lay together like that for several minutes, both whispering our love to one another and sharing light kisses.

My personal heaven was disrupted by the smell of something disgustingly sweet lingering outside the door. Ness noticed my body stiffen beneath her.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

And then she smelled him.

**A/N: Feel free to leave me a little review if you loved (or hated) the chapter. How'd you feel about the "I love you" scene? Did it leave you smiling or feeling disappointed? **

**Reviews brighten my day and remind me that there's a reason I take the time to post rather than write for my own enjoyment (which is my primary reason for writing). **


	9. Jealous

**Chapter 9 – Jealousy**

**A/N: I think I forgot to mention this in a few chapters...I'm not SM and I don't own anything related to Twilight. **

**I'm pretty sure I've responded to all the sweet comments on the last chapter, but just in case (and for those who post anonymously)—THANKS!**

**Thanks to my PTB betas, ****Sheynondoah and TwilightHeart21!**

**NPOV **

_Fuck_.

How long had Warren been lingering in the damn hallway? And why the hell was he back?

Now wasn't the time to work through the whole Warren issue. I was trying to figure out exactly how I was going to break this little – ahem, _life altering_ – development to him. Here I was on cloud nine, enjoying these unfamiliar, tender kisses and whispers with the man I couldn't imagine being away from, and suddenly my little moment is ruined.

"Please chill. For me?" I pleaded with Jacob, knowing his every instinct was to kill Warren; not only because he was a vampire, but because if he had to have a label, it would be ex-lover, and he just interrupted something so _perfect_. "He's my friend, Jacob. Remember that. I'm going to have to deal with this sooner or later."

He rolled his eyes and pulled me impossibly closer. "How about later?" he said sarcastically.

I kissed his jaw lightly. "Just give me a few minutes, okay? Don't move an inch."

He raised one eyebrow cockily. "And what if I do?"

I touched his cheek and showed him an image of me wearing a chastity belt. _As if_. I had to do something to keep him from ripping Warren to pieces.

"I'll stay put as long as he doesn't start acting like an ass."

I kissed his pliant, warm, delicious lips again and felt like I could melt. I didn't understand a bit of it…yet…but I didn't care. Something inside me had changed eternally.

I slid on my robe and flip flops, did a quick check in the mirror only to realize there was no getting rid of the post-sex glow and my hair was beyond help. Warren had probably heard everything anyways, so I just said to hell with it and slipped out the door, opening it as little as necessary before closing it the second I was out.

If there was any doubt in my mind about what Warren did or didn't hear, it was gone the minute I saw his face. He was absolutely crushed. It was official; I was an evil person and should be damned to hell. I felt tears coming and didn't bother trying to fight against them. I deserved this and so much more.

My legs went limp and I slid down to the ground against my door.

This man had never done anything but try to make me happy. I enjoyed his company so much and part of me loved him in a very different way than I felt for Jacob or anyone in my family. I loved him as a friend. Everyone wanted me to be with him, but I just didn't feel it, not once.

He deserved to be loved. He was there for me. He guided me and helped me every time I was in need, every time I was being a whiney bitch and deserved to be slapped and told to shut up.

We had so much fun together. I didn't want it to end, but I also wanted him to be happy. Could I be so selfish as to ask him to continue to be my friend after this? To sit on the sidelines and watch another man fill the role he always wanted? I owed him so much more than this…

"I'm so s—"

Warren interrupted my apology. "Renesmee, you were never mine. Don't be sorry." He squatted down in front of me and stroked my hair. I really didn't want him touching me, but I owed it to him.

"But I am," I whispered. "You've done so much for me. And I truly appreciate it all. You're my best friend."

"Yes, but not your love." He sat down in the floor in front of me. "I'm fine with you not feeling for me the way I feel for you. I've known it all along. But I'm not so sure about this guy," he whispered so low I doubted Jacob could hear. "They're fucking werewolves, babe. One of 'em tried to kill me and damn near succeeded. His mouth was on my throat, and then all of a sudden he stopped."

I didn't bother trying to reason with him. It was useless. I couldn't explain something I hardly understood myself. Jacob and his friend weren't werewolves in the traditional sense, I knew that much.

"Everything's fine. I promise. Don't worry about it. It's not what you think."

"He tried to kill me and could have. They could kill you." I heard Jacob growl and could tell that he wasn't where I left him. He was right behind the door. "Renesmee, you can't do this. I'd rather you find a human than risk your life by being with this guy. Please, don't."

I could hear Jacob's heart pounding in his chest and his deep, measured breaths. He was clearly struggling to stay calm and behind the door like I had asked.

"Warren, _you_ please don't. It's not like that. They aren't even...look, can I come talk to you tomorrow morning? This isn't really a good place to discuss this." I gestured to my left and right, reminding him that we were sitting in the hallway.

"Sure, whatever," he mumbled, getting up and making his way down the hall. "I can't save you from this, Hun. You know where to find me."

I didn't breathe again until the elevator door closed with him inside. He never once turned back to look at me. My head fell back against the door and I just sat there for a moment, thinking of how fucked up the situation was.

There was a light tap from behind the door. "Ness?"

My heart skipped a beat. I'd never experienced anything like this before…this whole being in love thing. It was weird. I never thought anyone could have such a hold on me.

"Yeah?" I replied.

"Can I open the door now?" he asked calmly.

I smiled – actually smiled – and stood up. He cracked the door and I opened it the rest of the way. Seeing someone's face never brought me this much excitement. He made me feel like everything was perfect without doing anything at all, by just existing. I'd stopped holding back and fighting against my desire to give my all to him. At this point, I was his entirely…even if it didn't make sense.

He opened his arms and I went to him, closing the door as he pulled me into his chest. "I'm sorry this is hurting you," he murmured into my hair.

I shook my head. "It would have happened eventually. He's been in love with me from the beginning. I'm a terrible person for dragging him along like I have."

"You could never be a terrible person. He said it himself; he knew you were never his. He knows it's his fault. That's why he's not mad at you but himself," he said soothingly, pulling me to the bed and into his lap. I felt so safe and warm and…at _home_…in his arms. It really did feel like we were made for each other.

"How do you know all this?" I asked.

He chuckled under his breath. "Truth?" he asked. I nodded. "I've been in his shoes. Well, not exactly, but I can relate."

I turned to look up at him. "So you've been in love before?"

He laughed out loud. "I'd hardly call it love. I was young and dumb. Anyways, I'd rather not talk about it. Have you ever been in love?"

"I didn't even know what it was until you. My feelings didn't make sense. They didn't have a name." Staring up at him, I felt like my life was perfect.

"So you never had any love feelings for that…err…guy?"

I laughed lightly. "None at all. He'd try to kiss or touch me lovingly and it'd make me cringe." In truth, I was starting to believe that I couldn't have ever loved anyone but Jacob, like my heart belonged to him my entire life without knowing it.

He stared at me for a moment before timidly asking, "So you're okay with all this?"

"How could I not be okay with it? It doesn't make any sense, but how could something that feels so perfect be wrong?"

"Would it weird you out if I sort of explained everything a little more? There's a little more to it than just being soul mates. I feel like you should know everything."

I only nodded. No matter what he told me, I couldn't imagine it being enough to make me leave him. Nothing could.

"Part of our um…breeding, I guess you could say…part of being a shape-shifter is imprinting. Not everyone does it. There are different theories as to why we do it, but no one really knows. Some think it makes for stronger wolves in the future, others think it's just fate. A couple of guys have imprinted on random girls that weren't even Native American so it's hard to think it has to do with making stronger wolves."

"Wait, so there are lots of shape-shifters?" I asked. For some reason I thought it was only him and Embry.

"A good bit, yes. Last time I counted, there were seventeen. Not all of them have imprinted, though." He paused for a moment,"When we imprint, it's like an instant love unlike anything else in the world. I'd felt a pull to you all week. I could smell you everywhere. And when I finally saw your face at the party, it happened. I tried and tried to fight it but I couldn't. The bond was too strong."

I felt that way, too. Everything he just said applied to me. I reached up and placed my hand on his cheek, showing him how I felt when I saw him, how attracted I was to him, how I could smell him. Then, after I saw his face, how I felt so much more for him but didn't understand it, how I felt so completed by him, how I, too, stopped the inner fight and let my heart win.

"I love it when you do that," he said with a smile. I couldn't help but smile back. My gift freaked even some vampires out - I was surprised he actually liked it.

"I wish you could do it. I'd love to see inside your mind." I'm sure Dad would, too. I kept that thought to myself. The last thing I needed was my family crawling down my back about dating someone besides Warren. I'd cross that bridge when I came to it.

"Words will have to do, I guess. What do you want to know?"

I shrugged, unsure of what to ask. I thought about it for a moment while running my nails across his smooth, well muscled stomach. _God, I just want to taste it_. "We can do this later if you want." He raised one eyebrow and gave me the sexiest grin. I guess he heard my thoughts.

"Calm down, tiger. I'm still recovering from earlier. Your cock is the size of a damn flag pole." Maybe not exactly, but it was easily twice as big as Warren's in both length and breadth.

We both laughed. Jacob's face turned a bit more serious. "I never want to be away from you. I never want today to end."

"Do you think you'd feel that way if you hadn't imprinted on me?" I couldn't help but wonder about that. I mean, I was supposed to be the enemy, not the one he loved.

"I know we're still getting to know each other, but I truly believe that if I hadn't imprinted on you and we met, I would have wanted to know you. There's no way I wouldn't have fallen for you. You seem like such an awesome person. My people put a lot of faith in fate, and now I do as well. If you're the person I'm meant to be with, then that's all I need to know. The rest will work itself out, just like it already has for us. I don't want to think about the 'what ifs'. I know that we're here together for a reason. I feel like I'd be yours either way. I hope you don't think I'm lying to you."

"No;of course not." I could feel it in every part of me that he was telling the truth. "I really don't care, Jacob. All I know is I've never felt this way about anyone in my entire life and I wouldn't have it any other way. My heart belongs to you."

He leaned forward and placed a light kiss on my lips. It was enough to make my heart flutter even faster. We stayed up the rest of the night talking about everything under the sun…music, movies, my eating habits, our likes and dislikes, school, places we wanted to go, things we wanted to do in the future, everything. We must have talked for at least six hours straight because the sun was creeping in through my small window when we finally fell asleep in each other's arms.

The questions, the reasons, the consequences…none of it mattered. Jacob Black had changed something inside me forever…and I loved him with every breath of my existence.

The sound of the door opening woke me and Jacob at the exact same moment. I quickly sat up praying Warren hadn't decided to come back, only to see my roommate dragging her bags in behind her.

"It's okay, it's my roommate," I whispered to Jacob. He nodded and burrowed himself back into the pillows.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" she whispered. "I'm going to get breakfast so I'll see you later."

"No, no, no, it's okay, really. We're clothed and sleeping with no intentions of doing anything else anytime soon. Stay."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. Don't try to be quiet for us, either. Watch TV or do whatever. I'm going back to sleep."

I curled back against Jacob and he nuzzled his face into my neck and hair. I noticed when he breathed in my scent. We slept for a couple of hours before another knock on the door woke me. I was so nervous that Warren would come back that my brain was on high alert. Whoever it was had a heartbeat, so I tried my hardest to drift back to sleep.

Ella answered the door and I couldn't help but eavesdrop. "Hey, come on in," she said to the visitor in a whisper. I smelled the air, it was Kimber.

"I was wondering where those two were all night," she whispered to Ella. "Man, I've never seen Jake make that face before."

"Yeah, he's been kissing her in his sleep every once in a while and keeps mumbling her name and shit."

Kimber laughed, but it didn't do much to mask the tinge of jealousy in her voice. "Beer flavored nipples, I guess."

"Maybe it's more than that," Ella whispered in response.

Kimber snickered. "Jacob's anti-commitment. That's why we work so well. He'll be back in my bed tonight."

_Over my dead body. _

I couldn't deal with anymore. I already wanted to kill one of the very few girls I considered an almost-friend on campus. If she kept spewing garbage, I just might act on my impulses.

I began to stretch and grumble, pretending to wake up. Jacob followed suit, but instead of stretching he just pulled me closer to him and trailed tender kisses along my neck and jaw line. From one barely open eye I saw Kimber watching. I felt victorious. Little did he know, he was saying everything I wanted to say without either of us actually speaking.

"Put fifty bucks on it," Ella whispered as softly as she could.

"You're on," Kimber replied.

Two could play that game. I was just about to tell Jacob to stop because there were other people in the room, but instead I decided to let him continue. His hand began to caress my face lovingly while his lips made their way from my neck, across my cheek, and to my mouth. His kisses were so soft and sweet and said nothing but _I love you_. I sent my thoughts to him through my hand on his bare back. _I've dealt with Warren, you need to deal with Kimber. _

"Who?" he whispered against my mouth.

_The girl standing across the room boiling with jealousy. _

He kissed me lightly a few more times just so I wouldn't think he was stopping because of her. I figured he was being polite. After all, it was considered rude to make out in front of others…unless you're at a frat party.

We both turned to face our audience and pretended to be surprised. "Mornin' ladies. Sorry, I didn't know anyone was in the room," he said smoothly.

"Don't let us disturb you," Ella said jokingly. Kimber huffed.

Jacob stood from the bed and stretched. Thankfully he'd put his shorts on before falling asleep. Kimber and Ella gawked as he pulled and stretched, waking his tired muscles. I didn't mind. He was fucking hot…ripped and hot and _mine_. They could admire all they wanted. I knew where his heart was – with me.

I stood beside him and ran my fingers over his abs lightly. He growled and gave me this look that made me want to knock him to the floor and fuck him right then and there in front of anyone who happened to be witness. His long arms came around my body and pulled me against him. His long fingers went up the back and side of my shirt and caressed the skin there, making me shiver in pleasure.

"Whaddya say to breakfast? I'm starving," he said, staring at me with those gorgeous brown eyes.

"Yeah, I need to get decent first though. I'll come down to your room when I'm ready."

His lips pressed against mine and my heart melted. "You're fucking gorgeous the way you are, but if you insist on getting all girly then I'll wait," he murmured against my lips. He squeezed my ass and kissed me one more time before heading for the door.

I went straight to my dresser and rifled through for something cute to wear.

"What did you do to him?" Kimber asked playfully. "Did you guys take X or something? I've never seen him like that before."

I wanted to say something smart and witty, something that would make Emmett proud, but I was still half asleep and definitely too blissful to be bitchy. "No drugs. I know we're friends and all, so I'm sorry about this, but we're sort of…I guess you could say exclusive."

There were _so_ many better words to describe what we were, but Kimber and Ella would think I'd lost it or something if I told them the truth.

"No way. Jacob is anti-commitment. Don't get your hopes up, Ness. He'll only break your heart." I could hear Kimber's irritation and envy seeping through her façade.

"I have spent the majority of the weekend with him. We were up until dawn just talking. Where were you all weekend? Because I know exactly where you _weren't_."

"Burn," Ella said jokingly.

Kimber huffed and left the room. I grabbed my robe and shower caddy and left to get ready for my breakfast date with the most amazing man I'd ever met.

I was ready in record time. I smelled Kimber in his hall and knew exactly where she would be. I stood outside his door and could hear every word of what was going on inside.

"Kim, stop. It can't be like this between us anymore." I heard the distinct sound of her kissing him. "Seriously, _stop_. I don't want you," Jacob said firmly.

"Yes you do, Jacob. Look at me. How can you say you don't want me? You _know_ me. You _love_ fucking me."

"Maybe at one time, but it's not like that anymore and it won't be ever again." I heard the kissing sound again and what could only have been a zipper being tugged on. "God Dammit, get the fuck off me! You're being pathetic. I'm with Ness now. I will _never_ want you. She's going to be here soon and I don't want to smell like you, so get up before I move you myself."

"How could you do this to me? We've been together for like a year now," she pouted.

"We've been hooking up for that long, but we've never been '_together'_."

I didn't even bother knocking, I just went in. Kimber was straddling Jacob's lap wearing nothing but her panties. Jacob was holding her by her forearms. He looked at me and knew I'd heard the whole conversation. He didn't have anything to worry about. The bitch on his lap was a different story.

"You sure you want him, Ness? You've only been apart for a half hour and he's already trying to fuck me."

"Bullshit. Like I've already told you, get the fuck off of me," Jacob said forcefully.

"Kimber, I heard everything through the door. I'm not fucking stupid. Now get off him before I make you."

She stood and started putting her clothes on. "Whatever. I see how it is," she hissed.

I shrugged. "I would have shared him with you if you hadn't been such a bitch."

She slammed the door on her way out, not speaking to either of us. I watched while Jacob changed clothes. Apparently he smelled too much like Kimber for his liking. He excused himself and went to the bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face again.

When he came back, he lifted me into his arms and sat me on his lap on the bed. "You know I don't want her, right? You did hear what happened, right?"

I nodded. "I know. She's just mad. I'm not worried about her."

"I could never even so much as look at her in a sexual way. I'm yours." Our faces were so close together. The heat between our bodies felt so thick. My breathing became labored and for the umpteenth time this weekend I felt like I was detached from reality. My head was swimming in everything Jacob. I felt woozy and tingly and euphoric.

Then his hot mouth pressed to mine. It was as if I could feel the love from him through our kiss. Everything was still so new, but there was no doubt in my mind that my heart and soul would forevermore belong to him.

Our lips moved together in the most beautiful way. His huge hands were so gentle and light against my skin, touching my face and the small of my back while we shared a long, heart stopping kiss. It surprised me how he could be so rough and aggressive sometimes then so tender at others.

"Heaven," he mumbled against my lips. Yes, this was definitely heaven. We sat there staring at each other with our foreheads pressed together for a moment, catching our breath. His stomach interrupted our trance with a loud growl.

"Let's get you fed," I said, though I really wanted to stay locked in his room and drown myself in this incredible feeling. I wanted him, yes, but I also wanted to do nothing more than hold each other and talk for hours like we had previously.

I'd never been around anyone who had such an effect on me.

**A/N: Okay, I totally love this chapter. I'd really like to hear what you think about it. The reviews from the last chapter helped me finish out the chapter I was working on with ease. Keep 'em coming! **


	10. To see her smile

**A/N: Thanks ****SO MUCH**** again for all the reviews on the last chapter and to my betas, TwilightHeart21 and DeeDreamer! **

**We left off with Kimber getting kicked out of Jacob's room by Ness and the two leaving for breakfast. Try not to hate Kimber too much, she's just hurt, that's all. She's a good person on the inside, I promise. **

**I still don't own Twilight. **

**Chapter 10 – To see her smile**

**JPOV **

I never wanted to be away from Ness. My brain was plotting ways for us to spend every possible moment together. I knew she had Calculus II the hour after me and I wondered how hard it would be to change my schedule.

"Wanna go to the park after breakfast?" I asked, praying she didn't already have plans for the day. Hanging around my dorm didn't sound like much fun considering the likelihood of running into Kimber.

The expression on her face wasn't promising. "I told Warren I'd talk to him. I don't want to, but I have to." Her eyes said she was telling the truth.

"I'm coming with you," I blurted before the entire thought had even formed.

She sighed and looked at me with a straight face. "I have to do this, Jacob. Alone."

"But what if he gets angry and tries to hurt you? Or forces himself on you?" It hurt just to think about it.

She reached across the table and took my hand in hers. "He won't. I'll be fine, I promise."

"Will you call me when you get there and when you leave?" I felt pathetic for asking, like an over-protective, jealous boyfriend or something. This was different, though; he could hurt her.

"Yes, so stop worrying."

We discussed lighter topics while we finished eating. I brought her back to our dorm building and walked her to her car so she could go visit her vampire ex. _Great_.

"Is this Daddy's way of making up for being an ass?" I asked gesturing to the bright red BMW we were approaching.

She laughed lightly. "No, this is what you call _leverage_. Dad thinks holding a car over my head will keep me out of trouble."

I smirked. "It's not working." We both laughed before sharing a goodbye kiss and hug. "Please call me," I said gravely.

"I will," she whispered. I wondered how long it would be before we learned how to be close to each other without getting lost in the moment.

She got in the car and I was about to give her one last kiss when she slammed her fist onto the wheel then jerked a bright pink bow off the radio. "What's wrong?" I asked.

She rolled her eyes. "Nothing. I'll call you when I get there," she mumbled.

I pretended to walk toward the building while my eyes watched her drive away. The moment she was out of sight, I pulled my phone from my pocket and called Embry. He was still asleep but didn't mind the disruption since it had to do with paying a visit to the vampire I hadn't let him kill.

He met me just outside campus and we hauled ass to Warren's house. Embry had followed him there yesterday and knew exactly how to find it through the woods. We parked the car on the side of a dirt road and ran through the woods the rest of the way. I didn't want to hurt Warren or even show myself to him or Ness, but I couldn't let her go without some kind of protection.

We managed to make it to his house just before Ness pulled up, finding the perfect spot to watch yet stay out of sight. I saw her using the phone but I'd turned mine off so I could only assume she was leaving me a message. She looked nervous as she made her way to the door. Warren walked outside before she got to the porch.

"I thought you'd change your mind," he stated confidently. I wanted to knock the smug grin off his face.

"I'm not here because I changed my mind. I told you I'd come talk to you about all of this in the morning," Ness replied, approaching him slowly.

Warren's cockiness disappeared, quickly being replaced by scorn. I fought the growl that was building in my chest. I _really_ didn't want Ness to know I was watching her.

"So this is it, then? You're choosing a mongrel over your best friend?" he asked with a little too much anger in his voice.

Ness looked so hurt. "I didn't know I had to choose one over the other. I hoped we could remain friends. Is that not an option?" She looked at him beseechingly.

He stepped closer to her; the distance between them was not even an arms length. "I'd follow you anywhere, Renesmee; but I'm not going to stand around and watch you fall in love. Not with a fucking dog." He paused and shook his head. "I can barely look at you."

She raised her brows. "_Barely look at me_? What was with all that nice shit you were saying last night?"

"You really think I was going to come in there and be an asshole when your fucking dog boyfriend was right behind the door? What, so I could have them after me again? No thanks." I hated the way he was talking to her, but I wasn't going to make a move unless things got ugly.

She looked broken. "I'm sorry," she breathed. "You don't underst—"

"And I don't care to. Just go home. I won't be a bother to you anymore." Warren's shoulders slumped and he turned to go into the house. Ness turned to walk down the stairs but he caught her arm. "I love you," he murmured, pulling her into an embrace.

"I'm sorry I couldn't love you the way you love me. I'm sorry," she said in a broken cry.

He pulled away from her embrace and walked into the house. Ness stood there for a second, staring blankly at the ground, before darting to the car. Then I remembered that she should be calling me any minute. I ran back to my car as fast as I could, with Embry right behind me, and made it just in time to answer.

"Hey, everything okay?" I asked, knowing everything was definitely _not_ okay.

She sniffed. "Yeah, fine. Do you mind if we skip the park?"

"No, that's fine." _Please invite me to your place._

"Can you meet me at my room in ten minutes or so? I…I need you." It felt good to know that she needed me, but I wished it wasn't because she was feeling hurt.

"I'll be there." _I'll always be there_.

I tried to think of a way to make her smile. I went through my mental notes of her likes and dislikes, trying to think of something that wouldn't be too cliché or flat-out corny. I knew all of her favorite sweets, but trying to heal her with sugar seemed so predictable. She wasn't big on flowers, so that was out. Then it hit me – music. She loved music. I handed Embry my phone as I flew down the road toward the dorm.

"Pull up Ticketmaster; see if there's anything going on for next weekend; Metal or Rock or something. Anywhere," I stammered.

He tapped on the touch screen a few times. "How are you going to pay for it?"

"Credit card I guess."

Embry rattled off a few bands that were playing before coming to the most awesome summer tour – The Mayhem Festival. The first two names he rattled off sealed the deal: Slipknot and Korn.

"Fucking perfect. We're going to have to make a side trip."

I drove a couple of miles out of the way to the grocery store that had a Ticketmaster outlet inside and literally ran inside. I had Embry buy the tickets with my credit card while I grabbed a card to put them in. The whole stop took less than five minutes.

As luck would have it, I had a pen in the glove box and was able to scrawl a quick note into the card before running into the building.

Heaven opened the door before I even knocked. Her eyes were puffy and red. The mother fucker should be burned alive for making her cry. She wrapped her arms around my waist and buried her face in my chest.

I lifted her, closed the door, and carried her to the bed. She curled against my body and it felt like a missing piece of me had returned. I rubbed her back lightly and placed soft kisses on her cheeks.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"Don't be sorry. You didn't do anything," I murmured into her hair as I held her tightly against me.

"It's not what you think. I never loved him. It's just that he was the only friend I ever really had. I feel terrible for all the things I've done to him."

I placed a finger over her lips. "Shh. Don't beat yourself up about this; you didn't do anything. He knew the whole time that you didn't love him and never would."

"It still hurts, though….losing a friend."

_Yeah, sometimes it hurts enough to make you run for years_. "I know," I consoled. "He's a bastard for doing this to you. There's no reason for him to not talk to you anymore."

She pulled her face back and looked at me. "How'd you know he said that?"

_Busted_. "Well, I just figured…you know, since you were so torn up."

She glared at me knowingly. "I thought you were there. I thought I had smelled you but blew it off as it being your scent lingering on me from earlier."

I pulled her back to my chest and hoped she'd forgive me. "I'm sorry, babe. I couldn't let you go alone. He could have hurt you. I behaved, though. He didn't even know I was there."

"I'm a big girl, Jacob. I appreciate your concern but…wait, there's something stabbing me." She wiggled away from my body.

"Oh. Right. Here, it's for you. Well, us." I handed her the card I had tucked inside my pocket.

She opened it carefully and smiled at the image on the outside – a goofy faced puppy smiling. What can I say, I was in a hurry. Then she opened it and laid the Ticketmaster envelope in her lap so she could read what I'd written:

_Ness, _

_I hope this makes you feel a little better. Sorry your friend wassuch a fucker hurt you. _

_Love,_

_Jacob_

Again, I was in a hurry.

She kissed me on the cheek sweetly before returning her attention to the other envelope. Her face lit up when she read the tickets.

"This is so freakin' awesome! I can't believe it! You are THE best!" she squealed, squeezing the life out of me. "I wanted to go, but Warren was the only person I could bring and it's too sunny here for him to be out and about during the day at a concert."

"I thought you'd like it." She cut me off with fervent kisses.

"I just thought of something! Let's make a weekend of it. Ditch Friday afternoon and head down to Atlanta then come back Sunday night. What do you think?" she asked excitedly.

I laughed inwardly. _Sounds like a lot of money I don't have. Guess it's time to get a job_. "As long as you don't mind a cheap motel."

"It was my idea. I'm funding this," she said insistently.

I huffed. "I'm the guy. You're not supposed to pay for stuff like that."

"My dad's an ass. Do you want me to go over all that again? Just say yes." Her beautiful brown eyes were pleading with me; how could I say no to her?

"Yes, master." _Isn't this supposed to go the other way around?_

She pulled her laptop and a notebook onto the bed. After she had a half page of written notes – most of which she wouldn't let me see – she pulled out her phone.

"Hey, Al. Is my dad around?" she asked the person on the other end of the line.

"No. You actually _want_ to talk to him?"

"HA! No. I have a favor to ask," she said sweetly.

"Oh no. Please don't get me in trouble," the other person said in a worried tone.

Ness didn't speak for a second. "It's nothing huge and you won't get in trouble." She paused again before speaking, working up the nerve to say whatever she was about to say I supposed. "Can you slide me five. Please, please, please, please?"

"I take it by the sound of your pleading that you mean thousand, not hundred; correct?"

_Holy hell! What does she need with five fucking grand? _

"Please?" she asked again.

The other person huffed. "Fine. But you have to tell me what on earth you plan to do with it," she said flatly, as if they were talking about a hundred bucks, not five _thousand_.

Ness perked up substantially. "I'm going to Atlanta with some friends this weekend for a little concert. They're all planning on staying at some dump but I insisted on getting us a nice room. Plus I want to check out the shopping—"

"And the strip joints, I'm sure. You freak," the other person interrupted.

"How'd you guess?" Ness smiled deviously and gave me this look that made my stomach tighten. This girl would be the death of me.

"Atlanta is known for two things – Hip Hop music and strip clubs." They both laughed. "Okay, the transfer is complete. Be a good girl, 'kay? And tell Warren we all said hi."

Ness's smile faded for a moment but it came back as soon as our eyes met after she hung the phone up.

"I don't want you bitching about how I spend my money, alright?" she feigned bossiness. Two could play that game.

I grabbed her wrists and pinned her to the bed beneath me. "I wouldn't call it _your_ money; I'd call it Daddy's. And what exactly do you plan on doing with five grand?" I let the Alpha come through. The look on her face – surrender and arousal – was _so_ sexy.

"A hotel room, you, shopping, booze, strippers, new naughty bedroom attire, sexy outfits." She paused for a second. "I think that's all. And it's _my_ money, not my dad's," she added.

I pulled her up into a sitting position beside me. "How do you do that?" she asked quietly, looking a little dazed.

"Do what?" I asked. I knew exactly what she was referring to – the Alpha tone that made her submit so easily – but I wanted to hear it from her lips.

She shook her head a little. "Sometimes when you tell me what to do or ask me something, it's like I can't say no…I have to do whatever you say or ask."

"Oh." I shrugged, forcing myself to once again focus on the woman in front of me. "It's an Alpha thing."

She cocked an eyebrow. "A what?"

"Alpha. The boss." I'd been avoiding this subject for several reasons, but I didn't want to keep anything from her, especially not if she asked flat-out. Plus, I sort of brought it on myself. "I'm sort of the leader of my pack. Not a very good one, but still. When you're Alpha, you have that power over everyone in your pack, and apparently your imprint as well."

She eyed me seductively. "So you're the leader and can command me and your…pack… to do whatever you say, and we can't help but obey?" The impish tone in her voice told me that now wasn't the time to explain the whole Sam's-pack-bloodline thing.

The back of my mind was occupied with thoughts about whom exactly that money was coming from if it wasn't her dad…and why she mentioned her dad being an ass then claiming the money wasn't from him. We'd known each other for exactly two days; it wasn't my place to meddle in her finances. I'd find out one day, though.

"Pretty much," I replied instead.

"That's really sexy. Mmm." She crawled into my lap and started nipping at my ear. That fucking hand came up to my face and my mind was assaulted by images of us doing all sorts of kinky things while she moved her perfect lips across mine. All of the images shared one common trait – I was in charge and she was submitting. Then her voice came in through her touch…_dominate me…make me scream…_"Fuck, Ella's here," she muttered, climbing off my lap.

I could have sat there and watched her fantasies all afternoon then acted them out all night. Why did we have to be college students living in a dorm with roommates? At least we had this weekend to look forward to. I always wanted to try the Alpha thing out in the bedroom. With Kimber, I had always played the dominant role; I'd tell her things and let the Alpha out a little, but I couldn't be sure if she was just playing along or if it was truly affecting her.

We ate lunch together in the park. I tried not to look like a lovesick idiot, but failed at every turn. I caught myself staring at her over and over again when I should have been eating. I couldn't help it…the wind kept blowing this little lock of hair across the side of her face…then I'd see her focused on something far away and I'd take the chance to memorize the lines around her eyes when she squinted. One of my favorites was probably watching her drink from her can of soda…the way her lips moved as she pulled it away, how they sort of stuck to the metal. _Lucky can_.

The thing that topped them all, though, was her skin. It didn't do that creepy sparkle thing that vampire skin did in the sun. She sort of glowed. It reminded me of how my skin looked that one time Rachel dusted some sort of bronzing powder shit all over me when I was sleeping, except Ness was much paler than that. The glow wasn't bright enough for human eyes to notice, but I was able to see it. _Beautiful_.

We didn't talk a whole lot, but it wasn't awkward or uncomfortable. I wasn't sure what to say anyway. Things were progressing so, _so_ fast with us. It wasn't like this with the other guys and their imprints. Their relationships came together pretty quickly, but not in one weekend like this. Ness said she was _in love with me_. She didn't understand it, but she felt it. We were drawn to each other in a way I'd never seen before in any of the other imprint couples.

There were reasons I didn't feel like talking much – subjects I didn't want to come up. Things like that fucker who made her cry, my family and the pack, and how we'd have to actually attend class tomorrow instead of spending every waking moment together. Neither of us had shared much about our family history yet. I got the feeling she had a lot of hard feelings towards her parents, but she never gave many specifics.

I wanted to know more about her vampire side. She always said 'parents' in the plural, but surely she couldn't have had two blood relation parents. Even if Bella had survived that…_birth_ if you can call it that…surely there can't be a second woman in this world capable of surviving something so…I couldn't bring myself to call something that brought Ness into this world disgusting. It didn't matter, though. With any amount of luck, I wouldn't be meeting them any time soon.

It would take a lot of time and mental prep before I could really accept the fact that this amazing woman's parents – or at least one of them – were vamps. Real blood-sucking, undead, stone-cold vamps. I tried to push aside the fact that Ness was half vamp; I pretend she was some other form of supernatural, her own type of mythological creature.

But pretending didn't change reality. Ness was a half-vamp who thirsted for blood – at least on some level – and she had the power to take down the entire student body. And yet, I knew without a doubt, she was _mine_.


	11. Warm Fuzzies

**Chapter 11 – Warm Fuzzies **

**A/N: Thanks to my betas, DeeDreamer and TwilightHeart21! **

**The last chapter left us with Warren showing his true colors, Ness planning a weekend trip to Atlanta, and Jacob spilling that he's Alpha. **

**Thanks for the awesome reviews! I'm thinking about getting on **_**the twitter**_** (lol...Anyone else know where that came from?). I'm posting this a little early for a couple of gals who are up late and gabbing about my fic :-)**

**I still don't own Twilight. **

**NPOV**

I didn't ever want to say goodbye to him.

We managed to entertain each other all day and well into the evening. It was so strange to enjoy a guy's company like that. He was so different from anything I'd ever experienced. He was playful and _God_ was he sexy, but he was also so sweet and tender...and the strangest part was that I actually _liked_ it. The way he held my hand gave me butterflies. His random touches and gazes made my heart flutter. I always thought things like that were for schmucks, but it was so perfect.

In the one weekend we'd known each other, we had sex one and a half times. As much as I _really_ wanted him, I decided to at least try to control myself until the following weekend when we went to Atlanta together. Four days. I could keep myself under control for four days.

I kept that in mind all day and managed to keep from crawling all over him every time the opportunity presented itself, like when we were in the car or the restaurant parking lot. You'd think after the countless times he'd gotten me off, I'd be sated...but I wasn't.

I was addicted and in need of another hit…then another…and another.

When the night came to an end, it almost hurt. This had been the best weekend of my life and I didn't want it to be over. Tomorrow it would be back to reality: school, homework, and not being able to spend every second with this amazing person. When we got back to the dorm, he walked me to my door. He was holding my hand and doing this rubbing thing with his pinky that made my heart beat in ways I didn't entirely understand.

When we reached my door, Jacob turned me around to face him. I knew he wasn't coming in, something about his posture made it clear that this was goodbye. My eyes moved up his chest, the lines in his neck, across that strong jawbone that just begged to be nipped at, and up to his dark chocolate browns. It was like he could actually warm my soul just by looking into my eyes.

He didn't speak for a moment and I wished more than anything I could read his mind. I wanted to ask when we could see each other again, but didn't want to seem obsessed. No matter how short the amount of time that would bass before we'd see each other again, it would still be too long.

Then there were things I wanted to say but didn't have the nerve..._I love you, I never want to be away from you..._

Fuck, we were still holding hands. The way his entire face warmed and glowed at the same time made it pretty evident that he heard my humiliating thoughts. He only squeezed my hand tighter as I blushed bright red. He dropped it to wrap his thick arms around my waist and pull me against him.

"Can I see you tomorrow after class?" he asked quietly into my ear. The heat of his breath sent a very not-cold chill through my body.

I only nodded, too embarrassed to speak.

Then he said something I didn't understand in a language I didn't even recognize. The way it rolled off his tongue could only be described as beautiful. His nose trailed down my neck, eliciting another not-cold shiver, before he came back and placed one kiss below my ear. This was going to be a long four days.

"G'night Ness," he whispered then said something else equally unrecognizable and beautiful.

"Tell me," I pleaded as he began to pull away from our embrace.

"What?" he asked, shrugging nonchalantly.

"What does it mean?" My voice came out all wrong. I was so lost in the moment…in him.

He brought his face back down to mine and gave me a kiss that made my legs feel unsteady. I almost moaned just from a _kiss_. His mouth moved across my cheek and over to my ear. "Everything you didn't say out loud."

I couldn't help myself. I pressed my body against his. _Not like this...I want this to be right... _

"See you tomorrow afternoon," he murmured. I was so lost in him that it took me a second to register that he was about to leave. He kissed my lips one more time and stepped back, leaving me breathless and wanting so much more.

_Act normal for fuck's sake; you just met him two days ago... _

"Bye," I said in the most "normal" voice I could muster, but I was still pretty hypnotized. I forced my feet to move and my hand to open the door, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from his as he walked down the hall toward the elevator, craning his neck to keep his eyes on me.

Ella yanked my arm and pulled me into the room. Any other time that would have been impossible, but I was so..._lost_…that my body was like Jell-O. She closed the door and I collapsed onto my bed.

_So. Fucking. Amazing. _

_So this is what being in love is like?_ My brain kept going through this cycle of everything Jacob...his touch, smile, lips, the little indention in his chin, how warm he was, those deep eyes, the way his voice vibrated against every bone in my body, his kisses, his scent...everything. Nothing in the world could bring me back to reality. I wanted to fall into a sea of Jacob and never come back.

I wasn't sure if it had been a few minutes or an hour, but eventually, Ella's voice managed to bring me back to the real world.

"Hmm?" I asked.

"Are you watching this?"

The only thing I was watching was a replay of my Jacob fantasies from earlier. _Four fucking days. _"No," I mumbled.

"You're in deep," Ella said.

"Whaddya mean?"

"You really like him, huh?"

_Like? LIKE? Understatement of the year. Mesmerized...addicted...so in love I don't even understand it... _

But I couldn't share all that. "You have no idea."

"Spill already! Come on, you guys spent the whole weekend together. Give me _something_. Just a little drop of juiciness," she begged.

I'd never had to deal with this sort of girly, gossipy bullshit. I'd only seen it on TV. "Umm... he's a really great guy," I said, though it came out sounding more like a question. What did she want me to say? That I was insanely in love and he was hung like a whale?

"Come on, Ness. We're supposed to be friends!" she replied pleadingly.

I huffed and decided to be "normal" for a few minutes. "We sort of…click. I've never had feelings for a guy before so it's all new to me."

"What about that blonde guy?" she prodded.

"He was never anything more than a friend. Jacob does these things to me that always made me cringe with Warren...like the way he touches my hair and kisses me so...I don't know..." What's a good word to describe it without sounding like an obsessed crazy person who is madly in love with someone she just met? "…softly." I was far gone now. My mind was fuzzy and thoughts of Jacob entranced me.

"You've _seriously_ never had feelings for a guy before?" She plopped down into her bed which was across from mine.

If only I could tell her the truth, she'd understand. "Not once," I replied instead.

I was surprised that I managed to hold a decent conversation with Ella without giving too much away, but when Monday morning rolled around, my mood quickly soured. The day dragged on; classes felt like they were the longest ever. The highlight of my morning was when I arrived in Calculus and found a pen in the floor beside my desk that was unmistakably Jacob's. His scent was all over it and my desk.

Like a fourteen year old girl, I used the pen for the rest of the day and felt this giddiness every time I pulled it out. I thought about biting on it just to see if it tasted like him. The only thing that stopped me was that I found it lying on the ground. _Eww_.

I kept doing things without consciously deciding to, like touching the stupid pen to my cheek and neck, as if the thing could grow lips and kiss me. I'd catch myself doing it and try to snap back into reality, but the subconscious mind was an impossible thing to beat.

I called Warren between classes. Not that I particularly wanted to talk to him, but I needed to. I felt obligated to. At minimum, I needed to know if he was planning on sticking around the house. I wouldn't kick him out if he wanted to stay, but I sure wasn't about to waste my money on rent if he was going back to California.

He didn't answer. I didn't leave a message and decided this would be the last time I called. He knew my number and where to find me. If I didn't hear from him in a couple of weeks, I'd check the house to see if there was any sign of him.

Warren was once someone I held close to my heart, but after our last encounter, I was left feeling burned. Jacob was important to me – immensely more than Warren had _ever_ been – and I wouldn't drag myself down by worrying about his doings. Jacob deserved better of me…and I deserved better for myself.

Much to my satisfaction, Kimber wasn't in class. I'd been nervous about facing her all morning. I didn't want to hate her, but if she wanted to be a bitch then two could play that game. Maybe having one more day to cool off would help matters.

Part of me couldn't blame her for reacting the way she did. Before Friday, I would have been pretty upset if some strange girl waltzed into Warren's life and claimed him as hers after knowing him for one weekend.

Kimber and Jacob weren't exclusive, but by the things Jacob said about their history, I could tell that at one point they'd at least been good friends, the way Warren and I were. Jacob said he didn't want to have anything to do with her. He seemed to mean it, but I couldn't imagine dropping a friend just because you decided to not have sex with them anymore.

The only reason Warren and I couldn't remain friends was because he was in love with me from the beginning. I wasn't jealous of Kimber, and if Jacob wanted to be friends with her, I was willing to accept it. But I didn't foresee him going out of his way to maintain any kind of friendship with her.

I spotted Mr. Tall, Dark and Handsome leaning against my car as I left my last class. His eyes locked with mine the second I walked out the door. He was standing there in this snug-fitting polo shirt and his jeans hung on hips in such a way that made me want to rip them off and roll my tongue all over his pelvic bone.

He was smiling and looking every bit like a dark-skinned God. I realized a few seconds too late that my face was fucking beaming with excitement and I was doing this half-skip-half-walk thing towards him. _No sense in trying to hide it now_. It was ridiculous how much like a teenage girl I was being…all lovesick and infatuated…only the feelings I held for him were much more than infatuation.

As I came closer, his face began to resemble mine. He dropped the whole _Rico Suave_ act and a bright smile came across his glorious lips. When I was just a few feet away from him, I decided I wouldn't make the first move. I wanted to run, crash into his arms, kiss him with everything I had in me, and tell him out loud that I was desperately in love with him.

But I wouldn't.

I needed to be sure he wanted me like that. It seemed like he did, but what if the time we'd spent apart made him realize how insane this all was? Insane or not, I wanted it…but I wouldn't force myself on him, especially not here in front of so many people, unsure if he'd accept my affection or not. Talk about humiliation.

My ridiculous skip-walk slowed once I was a few feet away and I leaned against my car, leaving a couple of feet between us. He turned so that his body faced mine then pulled me against him. His smile was somewhere between impish and tender as he gazed down at me.

"Hi," was all he said. My heart did a little tumble. _Fucking traitor_.

"Hey," I managed to spit out through my Jacob-induced haze. His warmth enveloped me and we were in our own world.

He was so much better at this than I was. There I stood, a speechless puddle of boneless limbs against his chest, donning some ridiculous grin while he stared at me looking so charming and composed.

How did he do this to me?

Neither of us spoke for a moment. I was completely lost but I somehow managed to gather that he was, too, except his focus jumped between staring into my eyes to down my shirt. One advantage of being ridiculously tall I guess. It just made me want him more.

Finally, he leaned down to my ear. His warm breath against my skin didn't help with the whole boneless limbs thing. "Can I…umm…kiss you, Ness?" he whispered, causing my heart to damn near jump out of my chest.

I was too embarrassed and worried about how I would sound if I responded aloud. With my luck, I'd come out sounding exactly like the fourteen year old girl I was behaving like. Instead, I placed my hand against his neck. No words, just feelings…the desire, the _need,_ to feel his lips again.

My wish was granted. His warm lips pressed against the hollow beneath my ear as he took in a slow, deliberate breath. He exhaled just as slowly and the warmth of it sent a not-cold shiver through my body. His mouth grazed my cheek before pressing a light kiss to the corner of my mouth, all the while his fingertips slid across the exposed skin on the small of my back, bringing to the forefront all of the sexual desire I was trying so hard to contain.

Nothing around us registered – no sounds or smells other than each other's. I let my eyes close so I could completely focus on feeling his touch. Then his lips met mine. My heart immediately sped up. He cupped my face in one of his huge hands while the other held me close to him by the small of my back. It felt like I'd never been kissed before. I parted my lips just a little and he took the bottom one into his mouth, tasting.

Too soon, he pulled back and left me with one almost-chaste kiss on the lips. The charming grin was gone. He looked a lot like I did – lost in something _so_ wonderful. I wanted this every single day for the rest of my life. _Nothing_ could possibly be better.

The honk of a car horn brought us out of our reverie…unfortunately. That cute, charming grin was back and I couldn't help but smile in return and stare at those delicious lips.

"Can I ask you a favor?" he asked. I nodded, still afraid to speak. "Will you help me with Calculus?"

"Is _that_ the best excuse you could think of to hang out with me? Calculus?" I asked sarcastically.

He shrugged. "Would you rather I say, 'Hey Ness, I know your roommate has a night class tonight, so can we take this back to your place?'"

I rolled my eyes and laughed. The hand that was still on my back moved down until he was squeezing my ass. _Three and a half fucking days_. _I can do this_.

His adorable grin fell just a little. "I didn't want to go back to your place to have sex with you. I just want to be around you without having to share your attention with anything or anyone else," he said affectionately.

I sighed. "Why can't I keep my thoughts to myself with you?"

He tucked some stray hairs behind my ear. "I don't want you to."

What was I supposed to say to that? "Did you drive here or walk?"

"I walked. Gas costs money, ya know?" he said, opening my door for me.

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever. You riding or what?" I asked jokingly. He strutted arrogantly to the passenger door and got in.

Ella's night class was four hours long and kept her out until eight twice a week. That was four uninterrupted hours Jacob and I could spend together. When we got back to the dorm, I flipped on the TV and pulled him with me to my bed. He kicked his enormous sneakers off and situated me against his body. It felt so good to finally be curled up beside him again.

Without thinking, my hand slid up his un-tucked shirt to caress his smooth chest. He let out this sexy groan that made my stomach tighten and my panties wet. One second later, he took a deep breath through his nose smelling exactly what I was hoping he wouldn't.

My body wanted him fiercely. My leg hitched higher up his hips on its own accord. His hand that rested on my knee slid up the back of my thigh and all the way to cup my ass. I gasped when he smacked it. He rolled himself on top of me, right between my legs, and pressed his hardness against my center.

"I thought you wanted to be good?" he asked in this deep, low voice that made me even wetter.

I nodded, but my hips bucking against him said something entirely different. They spoke of what I really wanted…what I absolutely _ached_ for. He leaned down and gave me a kiss that wiped out every bit of willpower I had.

He sat back up but remained hovering over me. "I want to do this right for you…but you're making it sort of…hard for me." _Hard indeed_.

He moved our bodies so that I was lying beside him again. He looked about as frustrated as me. I was beginning to question myself…why did I want to wait until Friday to have sex when we'd already done it almost two times? I wanted him _so_ fucking bad. But at the same time, I didn't want this to be all physical.

I had feelings for him, _real_ feelings. Girls weren't supposed to act like sluts when they were in love. Maybe you could say that I'd acted like a slut with Warren, and that I'd already acted like a slut with Jacob, too. Did that mean it was too late to make it right? Did I even _want_ to make it right? Why should I? Because it's what human society says is right? Because when you're in love, you have to follow some certain process? Get to know each other and all that shit?

I wished I had someone I could talk to about it, but I didn't. There was more to Jacob and me than just normal human love. Our connection was so much more than anything even I understood. No way in hell was I calling anyone in my family about it, either. We could keep ourselves in check until Friday. It just felt like what should be done. If I couldn't do it right from the beginning, I could at least try to make it right after the fact.

"I'm sorry…I just…I don't know. Do you think I'm being stupid?" I asked, avoiding his gaze.

"If you want to wait a little while, that's fine with me. I don't think you're being stupid. I never thought you were a slut, either. It's whatever you want, Ness. I'll wait as long as you want, years even. I can't help wanting you, but I _can_ wait."

I wanted to give our relationship at least a little time to grow before getting too physical. There was so much we didn't know about each other, so much to learn. I wanted to have time for us to talk and bond.

"I can be good," I swore, mostly to myself. "Does that mean I can't touch you like this?" I asked, slipping my hand up his shirt to feel the warm, soft skin there. I watched his expression change, his eyes became hooded.

"Mmm…it…feels so good. I can't even…think." His voice was deep and husky; too damn sexy. I could tell by his breathing that my hand on his stomach wasn't doing either of us any good.

"How about this instead?" I asked, sidling up his body until I could reach to massage his head. The tension in his face faded and he closed his eyes.

"I love…that," he murmured. I wished he'd said _I love…you_.

I kept massaging his scalp while we pretended to watch a movie. When Jacob's eyes were open, they were on me. My mind kept running through the same questions that I wanted to ask, one sticking out more than the rest, one that would be more important than any other. How would he react to my parents? My very _vampire_ parents?

"Jacob?"

"Hmm?" he mumbled while looked down at me through half-closed eyes.

I swallowed hard and took a second to build up my courage. "I want to ask you something. Will you be honest with me?"

His eyes opened completely. I had his full attention. "Okay." His voice was sure but a little nervous.

"Do you hate _all_ vampires? Even the ones who don't hurt humans?" I asked shyly.

Jacob sighed nervously. "I've had alliances with a few that didn't harm humans. I didn't really _like_ them, but I tolerated them. I don't put up with ones who kill, though. Ever."

This wasn't going the way I hoped. "Jacob, I love my family. I don't expect you to meet them anytime soon, but are you going to be okay with them when you do?" _Please say yes._

"Your family is the reason you're alive. I could never hate anyone that brought you into this world…even if your dad _is_ an ass," he added jokingly.

I was so relieved. If Jacob could accept my family, maybe they could accept him, too. Maybe if I called them regularly to gush about how insanely happy he made me, they'd just be happy that I was happy and ignore the fact that he isn't their particular brand of supernatural.

I _wanted_ to tell them about Jacob. I wanted to tell everyone in the _world_ how amazing he was, how he made me smile every second we were together and kept me smiling even when we were apart, how I didn't know being with someone could feel this good.

But I knew that now wasn't the time. If it got around to my dad that I was having anything to do with anyone but Warren, he'd be knocking down my door in less than four hours.

With this very important issue out of the way, I decided that everything else could wait. I fell asleep on Jacob's chest. It didn't matter that I was wearing jeans and had clips in my hair. I was perfectly comfortable wrapped in his arms.

I barely stirred when he pulled away to take off my jeans and was lulled right back to sleep, his fingers lightly skimming the exposed skin on my back. When he moved again to get out of my bed, I clutched him tighter. Some part of my subconscious knew he needed to go home, but I really wanted him to stay. It didn't take him much effort to remove my sleepy, limp arms from his torso.

He spoke those beautiful words again, the ones I couldn't identify the language they belonged to. His voice made my heart melt. I didn't know exactly what they meant, but I had a pretty good idea. All of this barely registered through my sleepy fog.

_Three days_. My body physically ached for him, but it was so much more than that carnal desire to be claimed. I'd been fucked more than I cared to remember. I wanted to be _loved._

**A/N: **

**Just a bit of fluff before the action begins. **

**It's been a while since you've had any citrus. I hope you're ready, because the next chapter is guaranteed to deliver. **

**If this chapter gave you the warm fuzzies and made you wish you had your own Jacob, leave me a review :-) **


	12. At Long Last

**A/N: I received about 60 reviews this weekend. Prior to Friday, I'd received about 40 reviews TOTAL. Thanks to a couple of stalkers, my story has gotten a lot more attention. So, thanks wordslinger and jkane180. This one's for you! **

**Thanks to my so awesome betas, TwilightHeart21 and DeeDreamer. They are so encouraging and helpful! **

**Thanks so much for all the reviews! I love every single one. I checked my email like every few hours over the weekend, anxiously awaiting the next review like a kid at Christmas. **

**One last thing and I'll let you read—I want to give someone credit for my story. Without my amazing husband, I wouldn't be able to write the things that I do. The love, the emotions, the citrus…it's all inspired by the way he makes me feel. He is my Jacob: Rough around the edges, aggressive, HAWT, stubborn, adventurous, fun-loving, protective, raw masculinity at its finest…he's my perfect match. **

**I wish I could tell him that he's my inspiration, but he has no idea I write! **

**I'm on twitter now. I'm LavenderSkyJN. Link in my profile. Follow me!**

**Chapter 12 – At long last**

**JPOV**

The days were too damn long, but the afternoons and evenings weren't long enough. I got into the habit of meeting Ness after her last class each day, then we spent the rest of the afternoon together. I wished her roommate had a night class every fucking night, because both times she did, Ness fell asleep in my arms and I was able to see her dreams. Much to my surprise, I was the focus of every single one.

Dream Jacob had more balls than reality Jacob – he told her that he loved her. Out loud and in English, something I'd only done that first night. I _wanted_ to say it, but I didn't want to creep her out or anything. Instead, I hid behind my native language.

Aside from my slight hesitation in telling her about my feelings, my time with Ness would have been carefree except it seemed the entire campus was pretty tense after a student was reported missing. Some senior girl who lived off campus didn't come home from class Monday and hadn't been seen since. I wasn't too concerned. College girls did stupid shit all the time. Embry and I had chased off or killed every vamp in the area – and there hadn't been many to begin with – so we were pretty confident it wasn't anything we needed to get involved in.

It did throw me off when I saw her picture on the news, though. Ness and I were having dinner when it popped up on the screen. She looked like a less attractive version of Ness. Pale, reddish brown hair, and brown eyes. Ness quickly brought my attention back to her by clearing her throat.

"Can we talk about something else? That shit creeps me out," she said while stabbing her dinner with her fork. Her expression was pained.

"Sure. I don't see why it's bothering you so much though."

"The girl looks just like me," she grumbled.

"Psh. No one could look as good as you."

She sighed. "Kimber hasn't been in class all week, either."

I hadn't noticed until just then, but I hadn't seen her all week either. We usually left the dorm around the same time and crossed paths on the way to our 10:00 class. "Good," I replied instead. Ness didn't need to deal with Kimber after what she had done to her.

"She looks just like me, too." Ness looked really worried.

I sighed. "I think I still have her number." In truth, I'd called that girl so many times in the last year that her number was permanently etched into my brain. "Will it ease your mind if I call her?"

Ness seemed both jealous and relieved. "Would you? Now?" she asked.

I pulled out my phone and pretended to flip through my contacts to find her number. It rang several times before she finally answered. Her voice sounded ragged.

"Are you okay?" I asked flatly.

"I'm really sick. My mom brought me home."

"Oh, okay. When you get back, can you see if you still have my black hoodie?" I asked, the words coming out all wrong. I should have thought of a reason for my call _before_ I actually called.

"I'm sorry," she whimpered. Then there was dead air.

"See? She's just sick. She's safe at home with her mom," I soothed.

"Fine. I still think it's weird." Ness was visibly tense.

I needed to change the subject. Fast. "What time do you want to leave tomorrow?" At last, Friday was almost here.

She perked up just a little. "I can leave after—"

"Calculus," we said in unison. That was the class I needed to stay for, too. The professor was impossible. I think he used the same curriculum for his Honor class as he did for us regular students.

"Embry said he'll call when he's getting close. He needs to stay for all of his classes."

Embry and his fling of the moment were joining us. They wouldn't be staying in whatever five-star hotel Ness had booked for us, but they'd be hanging out with us a lot and coming to the concert.

"What's his friend like?"

"I don't know, I haven't met her. There's this girl I've been falling all over for all week so I haven't had the chance."

Her face brightened and it looked like all traces of worry were gone.

Friday morning came and I was _so_ ready to get out of town. As part of my morning ritual, I listened to the campus radio station while I got ready for class. Since I'd stayed at Ness's room until late in the evening, I never got around to packing anything so I rushed to throw some stuff into a duffle.

I was only half awake when the DJ ran through the news. It took a few seconds to register that there was another girl missing…another pale girl with brown eyes and red-brown hair. My heart sank. I called Ness just to make sure she was safe. The girl mentioned on the radio was a junior, so I knew they weren't referring to Ness, but still…My heart and gut wouldn't settle until I heard her voice.

It was obvious by her tone of voice that Ness hadn't heard the news about the second missing girl. She was so excited and apparently running around like a mad woman trying to get her things together for the weekend. It took me about two seconds to decide that I wouldn't be attending class at all today; I'd be making sure Ness was safe. If there _was_ some sort of creep going around campus kidnapping pale girls with brown eyes and reddish-brown hair, he would _not_ get to Ness.

The majority of the white female population on campus had blonde hair and a fake tan, leaving any redhead obsessed creep with a limited selection. _Not my Ness._

She was only going to two classes, and then we'd be far from campus for the entire weekend, leaving plenty of time for these missing girls to return. Or better, plenty of time for the cops to figure this problem out.

I followed her all morning, keeping enough distance between us so that my presence would hopefully go undetected. Despite this, I still didn't relax until the car was packed and we were heading down the highway toward Atlanta.

I wanted to do a little investigating, but there was no way I was letting Ness out of my sight. Besides, I couldn't exactly run around the city as a wolf. The area was too populated and there weren't as many wooded areas as back home.

I tried to tell myself repeatedly that it wasn't my place to go around solving crimes, but my protective instincts wouldn't hear of it. These weren't my people to protect, but it didn't matter. Even though the chances were slim, the disappearances _could_ be vampire related, and Embry and I were the only ones who could fix that problem.

Ness slept most of the way down while I drove her car. I was glad because it was pretty hard to act excited when my mind was reeling over the week's recent events. I took the opportunity to try and clear my roaming mind. I couldn't act like this all weekend. I'd been looking forward to this so much and I wouldn't ruin it by worrying about something that might be a product of my overanxious mind.

When we pulled up to the hotel valet, I was officially out of my element. I tried to remember ever seeing anything so upscale in real life and came up with nothing. I figured we'd be staying somewhere nice – but not _this_ damn nice.

I felt like an idiot when I started grabbing our bags from the back seat. Ness placed her hand on my arm and flashed me a quick glimpse toward the guy who opened her car door getting it all out and loading it onto the cart thing beside him. I had no class and no idea what I was doing in a place like this. What did Ness see in me?

I stood back and took in my surroundings while she got us checked in. I felt like such a douche for letting my...girlfriend wasn't the right word…pay for our room. One night at this place would probably max out my credit card. We followed a guy who pushed a cartload of our stuff – well, my one bag and Ness's four – all the way to our room. He offered to unpack our things but Ness politely declined. My mouth dropped when he opened our door. _Holy. Fuck_.

It was like I'd just stepped into some Travel Channel special on top luxury accommodations. The place was bigger than my entire house back in La Push. Two of the four walls were floor to ceiling windows and you could see for miles and miles. I couldn't do anything but stare at my surroundings. It was unreal.

"Is there anything else I can do for you, Ms. Masen?" the guy asked.

"If you could hang the 'Do Not Disturb' sign on the door on your way out, I'd appreciate it. That will be all," Ness responded in a formal yet friendly tone while handing him his tip.

The door closed behind the bellhop and, suddenly, we were alone. It had been hours since I'd kissed her. I wanted to so badly, but I didn't want her to think that I wanted sex right away. I could wait for her. We just got in and it was early in the day, there was plenty of time for that…if she wanted it.

I wasn't sure what to do, so I just stood there looking lost. Ness walked to where our bags were sitting, just a few feet away from me. She bent down with her ass sticking straight up in the air right in front of me. _What a fucking sight._

My feet moved of their accord and instantly I was pressed against her, my hands holding her in place by her hips. She ground against the beginnings of my arousal and fucking giggled.

"Something funny?" I asked gruffly, placing a firm but playful slap across her ass.

"Mmm. Not at all," she replied as she stood and faced me. My arms wrapped around her at once and pulled her close. I couldn't help the grunt that escaped.

Our mouths came together and all playfulness was gone. I'd been holding back all week and finally I let everything I had out. All the love, the desire, everything. I kissed her slowly…tenderly but deeply, with passion. Her hands came up to my face. _Take me…Make love to me. _

The moment I registered what she wanted, I lifted her and began to walk us to the massive bed. One of my hands slid down her back and squeezed her ass firmly. I couldn't help it. I'd been a good boy all week and it was time for my reward.

I gently laid her on the bed and we shared kiss after hot, deep kiss. "Can I?" I asked, tugging upward on the hem of her shirt.

"The answer…is always…yes. Don't ask," she murmured between kisses.

I pulled her top off to reveal the sexiest black lace bra covering her fucking gorgeous breasts. My mouth began to move slowly down her neck. I wanted to savor the moment, memorize every inch I came in contact with – to taste, to smell, to remember everything about the way Ness felt.

My hand slowly came up her stomach to reach her breast. I grasped and squeezed before letting my fingers swirl around her firm nipple. Finally, my mouth came to her breast. I sucked and licked my way down until my mouth was met with fabric. Ness was fucking panting and the smell of her arousal was building more and more by the second.

"Take it off," she breathed.

I unhooked her bra and flung it across the room. I went ahead and slid her pants down as well, revealing a tiny, black lace thong. _What a lucky little piece of fabric_.

My attention returned to her breasts. I took Ness's nipple into my mouth and gently nipped and licked it, drawing moans from her as I lapped at her skin. With each sound she made, my cock grew harder.

I started moving lower, placing open-mouthed kisses down her stomach. Her skin tasted _so_ good. My hands moved lightly all over her body…her breasts, her sides, and then finally I let myself wander down to her thighs. She let out a loud moan when my hand moved up her inner thigh, just as my mouth reached the top of her panties. I didn't wait for her to tell me, I just pulled them off and tossed them to the floor.

Her pussy was glistening with moisture and looked too fucking perfect. I could feel her pulse as my fingers explored the skin of her thighs and knew her heart was thundering. Mine was too. I took a second to appreciate the view of Ness lying naked right in front of me. I didn't deserve her, but she was fucking _mine_.

My mouth continued to kiss above and around her center, all around her thighs. I went slowly and lightly. Her legs actually shook a few times. She was panting and moaning already and I hadn't even gotten to the best part.

I reached up to play with her breasts and slowly moved closer and closer to where she wanted me to touch her most. My mouth finally moved over her lips and kissed lightly. After a few kisses, I let my tongue explore all around her pussy, from the very top of the slit all the way into her opening, slowly and lightly. Her clit was swollen and dying to be teased, so after tasting her, I moved back and began to flick it.

"_Fuck_," Ness moaned. She pulled in a few quick, sharp breaths before moaning loudly. "God you're so fucking good."

I quickened my pace just a bit, though I still wasn't going that fast. I slid two fingers inside her tightness. I couldn't wait to feel her around my cock, but right now it was all about her. My fingers curved and pressed against that magic spot on the inside and her hips lifted off the bed. Her body instinctively pressed against my face even more. I continued to flick her clit, speeding up just a little, while my fingers pressed again and again against that spot, the one that could drive a woman wild.

I spared a glance up at her face; it was so fucking sexy. Her fingers were pinching and rolling around both of her nipples. _Fuck, she's too much_.

"_Please_ make me cum, Jacob," she begged. "You make me feel so good."

I quickened my pace both inside her body and on her clit. Her legs shook and her walls were tightening around my fingers. Her moans got louder and came with each breath until finally she exploded. Once her body stopped quaking, I ran my tongue all around and inside her again, enjoying the taste of her orgasm.

Ness pulled me up to her face and kissed me passionately. "Your turn," she said sexily.

She pushed me onto my back then slid her hands up my shirt and all over my chest. Her mouth roved over my abs and I thought I was in heaven. My muscles tightened beneath her touch. She pulled off my shirt and gave me an appreciative gaze similar to the one I'd given her. Her lips came down to my pelvis while she worked to get my pants off. Thoughts that weren't my own began to flow through my mind.

_You're so sexy right here_, she thought, licking and kissing the lower part of my pelvis.

_And I love this part_, she continued, kissing just above where my happy trail ended. Thank God I had trimmed in the morning.

She pulled my pants and boxers off in one quick motion. Her hand ran up my thigh and I fought back a groan. I couldn't keep it in anymore when her hand wrapped around my shaft and she brought me to her lips. "Fuck," I grunted.

I watched her move up and down at a casual pace, taking every bit of me into her mouth. It felt unbelievable, but it wasn't what I wanted most. After a few minutes of enjoying her warm mouth, I gently pulled her up my body so that her face hovered above mine. I took my time kissing her neck and down her chest to those amazing breasts then flipped us so I was on top of her. She felt so good against me; naked and soft and _mine_.

_Please_, she pleaded inaudibly.

"Tell me," I murmured into her hair while she placed hot, open-mouthed kisses all along the shell of my ear.

"Make love to me, Jacob," she breathed. It sounded so fucking beautiful coming out of her mouth. The words twisted my insides in a very pleasurable way.

Our bodies connected at last. Incredible would be an understatement. My life felt fucking _complete_. Her voice sounded worshipping when she panted my name. I moved in and out of her body at a slow, tender pace. One hand explored her body while the other cupped her face.

Our mouths only detached enough to take in deep breaths as needed. I'd never hated the need for air before that moment. I wanted to feel every bit of her; her mouth, her body against mine, her hands, and her wet heat…all of it at once. Maybe I was greedy, but I was fucking loving it. I wanted _more_ of it.

Our bodies remained attached as we rolled together all over the massive bed, changing positions but keeping ourselves touching as much as possible. We were both covered in sweat, probably mine, but neither of us cared.

Ness shifted so that we were sitting up and she was straddling my lap. She took control and moved her body up and down my length. Now that I was able, I reached around and groped her ass, lifting her up and down as she moved at her own rate.

Her lips broke from mine and I took the opportunity to admire her… her sexy hair, those swollen lips, down further to her amazing breasts and pink nipples, then back up to where my eyes locked on hers. I could see my entire world right there in her deep brown eyes.

Ness had been sharing her pleasure with me through her projecting talent since we started making love, but when her palm came in contact with my face, intentionally sharing her mind with me, I got much more.

At first, there was just emotion…excitement, certainty, lust, intense pleasure, but there was one that stuck out more than the rest, one that made my heart pound ten times faster. Love. _So_ much love. The feeling alone brought me closer to erupting.

"Please…tell me," I breathed. My body was experiencing so much satisfaction that it was hard to even form a sentence.

"Jacob…" she moaned.

"Mmm…yesss…"

"I…I…" she continued. Her mouth crashed into mine and she kissed me with every bit of passion that I was feeling being passed into my mind.

"I love you," I said with every bit of confidence I could gather. "So…much." Her eyes widened, but in a good way. She kissed me again. It was a little bit slower but still enough to make my fucking toes curl.

Her body continued to move up and down and her rhythm increased, bringing me that much closer to losing it.

"I love you, Jacob," she said with crystal fucking clarity and so much reverence.

I couldn't hold back anymore. I quickly but carefully pinned her beneath me and showed her just how much I loved her. I moved in and out of her body with more intensity than before. My mouth moved all over her neck while she moaned and we both got closer and closer to falling off the edge.

I began to swell inside her body, unable to hold back my release. She became even wetter and her body tightened beneath me. I could see the pure pleasure on her face and feel it through her connection. We both exploded at the same time, her orgasm intensifying my own. She panted my name over and over until we were totally spent.

I pulled out of her body and fell beside her. Despite the fact that I was covered in sweat, she curled her naked form against mine and ran her fingertips all along my chest. It made my eyes roll back inside my head. _God the things this girl could do to me_.

"Ness?" I groaned, craning my head to look down at that gorgeous fucking body of hers.

"Hmm?" she said, turning to look up at me from where her head rested against my chest.

"I umm…meant what I said…" _grow some fucking balls, dude_, "about loving you, I mean," I continued, trying to sound confident. It was hard to look her in the face and say it, even though I meant it more than anything I'd ever said in my entire life.

"Me too," she said shyly, climbing up my body. Her face nuzzled my neck. "I love you, Jacob," she whispered.

Both our hearts were thundering. _She fucking loves me. ME!_ I turned my head and kissed her with all of the energy I had left.

I locked my eyes on her and decided to be a fucking man. "I love you, Ness. So much."

She made a little contented sound and returned to her spot on my chest. I realized she'd fallen asleep when her hand that was running across my chest stopped moving. I continued to lightly play with her hair until I, too, fell asleep.

Ness and I were in her car. We both looked so nervous.

"You sure you're okay with this?" she asked. I nodded. "Remember, we don't hurt people. I love them. They're my family. Just keep telling yourself that, okay babe?"

My attention was drawn to the sparkling ring perched on the steering wheel…the one on the third finger of Ness's left hand. We were engaged.

I saw myself swallow hard. "I'll be fine. I promise."

We rode in silence up a long road through the woods. Ness twirled the ring around her finger nervously. Finally, a large house came into view.

"You ready?" she asked, but it sounded more like she was asking herself. She let out a deep breath.

Two figures came out the front door and stood by the stairs.

"Please try not to think dirty thoughts about me. My dad…he sort of reads minds," Ness said as she climbed out of the car.

My eyes widened. I stepped out of the car and the two figures came into full view – two faces I'd recognize anywhere. Edward fucking Cullen and Bella…Cullen.

"Welcome home, sweetie!" Bella said sweetly, embracing my Ness.

"You must be Jacob. We've heard a lot about you," Edward said, walking toward me calmly. I didn't hesitate when he shook my hand. "I don't want to start out on the wrong foot, so could you at least _try_ not thinking about that?" he asked.

"Leave him alone, Dad," Ness called from the porch.

I shot straight up, accidentally knocking Ness across the bed in the process. _What. The. Fuck?_

"Jacob, what's wrong?" Ness asked urgently.

I shook my head, trying to get rid of what I'd just seen. "Nothing. I just had a really fucked up dream. Come' ere, we can go back to sleep. I'm sorry, babe."

"It's fine. I didn't mean to fall asleep. We've got a lot to do today," she said, hopping out of bed and going straight for her bags.

I stared as she leaned over – completely naked – to rifle through the largest bag. I'd been a good boy all day…until then. I moved behind her and pressed my growing cock against her ass and gave it a smack. "What's first on the agenda?" I asked playfully.

She moved her body slightly and my head was pressed against her opening. In a matter of two seconds, I was fully erect. "Mmmh, I think a little more of this, then shopping."

She walked toward the bed and I followed behind closely. She surprised me. Instead of climbing in, she simply placed a hand on the footboard and leaned forward until she was practically bent in half. I couldn't help but slap her voluptuous ass again. Her hips came back as mine moved forward and I was burying myself inside her.

This time was different. It was the wild, hot-as-fuck Ness I'd seen in her dreams and the visions she'd shared with me. Making love to her was unbelievable, but this was pretty fucking awesome too.

All traces of that fucked up dream were gone. We finally went shopping after our second round. I tried not to pay attention to the ridiculous prices she was paying for clothes and shoes. The best part of the whole trip was when we stopped at a few lingerie stores and one adult novelty store. She had me pick out a few things but I wasn't allowed to see most of her purchases – her five huge bags full of purchases.

We drove for a while until finally coming to a _very_ different part of town. The sidewalks were lined with people most would dub freaks. We went to a few stores where Ness bought some of the sexiest black leather shit I'd ever seen, with shoes to match. I begged to go into the fitting room with her, but she wouldn't let me.

By the time she was finished with all her shopping, the trunk and backseat were full of bags.

**A/N: So we're starting to get a taste of progress. Hope you enjoyed this chap! Leave me a little review. They make me smile. **

**If you'd like a sneak peek at chapter 13, tweet my story! After you tweet, send me a direct message there or on letting me know where to send it ( message, your email address, etc.) and you'll get it soon! **

**One more important note. I've posted a companion story in Kimber's POV. It's called 'Maniacal: Second Chances'. Go to my profile to check it out! It isn't absolutely necessary to read it, although it does provide some details that aren't expressly mentioned in Maniacal (and some lemony goodness that my beta referred to as _delicious). _**


	13. Dirty, Dirty Girl

**A/N: Thanks to my betas, DeeDreamer and EssaTheTwerp21, formerly known as TwilightHeart21. Different name, same awesomeness. **

**We left off with an effed up dream and some sweet I love you's. **

**If smut is not your thing, I'll warn you, this one is pretty graphic. **

**Chapter 13 – Dirty, Dirty Girl**

**NPOV **

Embry and his sexy blonde friend met us at our hotel once Jacob and I finished shopping. It was getting pretty late in the evening. I felt bad for them; they were staying at some motel by the amphitheatre. I would have invited them to stay with us, but I had far too many plans for the weekend – plans that involved being _alone_. _Although_, I could see myself spending some one-on-one time with Embry's friend.

_No. Human_.

I left the boys in the living area of our suite to go get ready in the bedroom. Hannah, Embry's friend, came with me. She was really outgoing and bubbly, much like most of the girls I'd met from school.

"So what's up with you and Embry?" I asked, saying the first thing that came to mind. From what Jacob had told me, he wasn't much for exclusivity. Neither was Jacob…once upon a time.

"He's great. We really…click." _Poor girl_.

"It's okay, you can tell her," Embry called from the living area.

Hannah's heart raced and her cheeks turned pink. "I'm um…his imprint."

I beamed, knowing exactly how wonderful her life had just become. "Oh my gosh! That's great!" I squealed, hugging her. "When?"

"Sunday night at Summits," she said excitedly.

I was enthralled. _Finally_, a human I could be friends with, someone who could know my secret, someone I could talk to about all this imprinting stuff. I was no longer alone in that aspect.

"Have you guys talked much about…secrets?" I asked quietly, returning my attention to the mountain of shopping bags in search of the perfect outfit, but keeping an eye on her as well.

She looked down and nodded.

"Do you know about…me?"

I stopped digging through my bags and looked up at her, waiting for a reply. She simply nodded again, avoiding eye contact.

I looked at her pleadingly. "I've never in my life hurt anyone. Ever. I swear."

"I know. Embry told me. It's just a lot to take in." She visibly relaxed, just a little.

"Well if it makes you feel any better, Embry could rip me to pieces before I could even get to your throat." _If he could get past Jacob_. "Anyway, what are your thoughts on paying women to take their clothes off?" I asked playfully, returning my attention to my search.

The more we talked, the more she loosened up. She had never been to a strip club but was open to checking one out. We talked a lot about the whole imprint thing. She was totally in love with Embry just like I was with Jacob. She, too, thought it was crazy, but let her heart win.

After about an hour of gabbing and getting ready, we emerged from the bedroom. Jacob gave me this look that made me hungry for more of what we'd done earlier. It was followed by this incredibly sexy grunt.

Hannah made herself comfortable in Embry's lap. I did the same with Jacob. Then I noticed three shots lined up on the table in front of us.

"Ladies, we need you to referee. Whoever wins two out of three doesn't have to drive," Jacob announced. They both held their fists out as if to play Rock Paper Scissors.

"That won't be necessary—"

I was interrupted by Jacob. "Hell no, you're not driving. Bad enough you paid for this hotel room." His tone was only slightly serious.

"None of us will be driving. Since this is our first little weekend away together, I sort of rented us an insanely awesome Hummer limo."

They all looked at me with the same stunned expression.

"Sweet!" Embry said in a high-pitched voice. He raised his hand to high-five Jacob, but only got a death glare in return.

"You can't keep doing that, Ness," Jacob said morosely.

I huffed and stood in front of him, putting my hand on my hip for dramatic effect. "You can bitch if I spend too much _on you_, but the limo is for _all_ of us and I insisted on this room so I _should_ be the one to pay for it. Bitch when I buy you $100 jeans or shot after shot at the bar, but you can't bitch about me spoiling _myself_, capiche?"

Jacob's face softened and I knew I had won. "You're so sexy when you get all bossy," he said, grabbing my ass and pulling me back into his lap.

Embry filled the fourth shot glass and distributed them. He poured three more after those were gone, sliding two across the table for me and Jacob.

"Where's mine?" Hannah asked.

Embry kissed her neck. "It takes us a _lot_ more than normal people, babe. I don't want you passing out before we really get started."

She gave him a pouty face.

"One more, but then you're going at a normal, human pace. Deal?"

She nodded and we took our shots, the alcohol sending a delicious, burning sensation down my throat.

We enjoyed the night skyline from our room's private terrace while we waited for the limo to arrive. An awkward silence loomed between me and Hannah.

Maybe it was more like I was being quiet and passive while the other three chatted casually. I searched for confidence in the form of two more shots and a stiff drink.

It was selfish and against Dad's rules, but I wanted her. Not necessarily _her_ per se, but I wanted to experience a girl that was more like me…warm and pliant; not frigid stone. She just happened to be a hot human female who I could almost justify as being an exception to the rule.

I wanted her, but I could barely bring myself to speak to her.

She knew what I was. I didn't have to hide from her. No humans knew my secret, and because of that I could not have a sexual relationship with them. Yeah, involuntary projection is a bitch. But what if said human already knew?

_Fuck it. At least I'm not driving drunk or using drugs… _

I was leaning against the concrete ledge, sipping something pink and sweet. Jacob approached me from behind and wound those thick arms around my waist, pressing my back against his broad chest and his face against my neck. He breathed in deeply through his nose and kissed lightly. I took the opportunity to caress his face, showing him my thoughts.

It was an image of the four of us. He and Embry watched as Hannah and I explored each other's bodies, mostly naked, hair everywhere. Jacob groaned and pressed his approval against my ass. He hastily pulled me into our room for what I thought would be round three. He closed the door and sat on the foot of the bed. I stood between his legs and automatically began to dig my fingers into his hair. His hands grasped my forearms and pulled them to my sides.

"Ness, I need you to listen to me." His rigid tone was sobering. He had my full attention. "I think it would be hot as _fuck_ to watch you do something like that, but not with her. I can't share you with Embry. I don't want anyone to see that but me. And I don't think Embry would want me to see his imprint naked, either." His hands slid under my shirt and up my stomach, all the way to my breasts. I let out a sharp breath and tried to keep myself from jumping him right then.

My hand came to his face again. This time it was of some random female my mind conjured up. Jacob nodded his consent and buried his face into my cleavage, kissing and sucking. His hand slid up my thigh slowly…_painfully_ slow. I thanked my lucky stars I was wearing a tiny denim skirt, perfect for a quickie.

My cell phone started ringing from across the room before things could get much farther. I was highly annoyed until I answered to find that it was the limo driver.

Our insanely awesome Hummer was waiting for us downstairs. I felt like a little kid going to Disneyland for the first time, except instead of people dressed in oversized character costumes, there were practically naked women flaunting their naughty parts.

The club was packed when we arrived. I had reserved a table in the VIP section – not to be confused with a VIP _room_, somewhere no one in our party would be visiting – so we had nothing to worry about. A bouncer walked us straight from the front door to a table with the best view in the house.

Jacob and Embry seemed really uncomfortable. Their eyes were fixed on the floor and only came up to look at me and Hannah. Were they so bound to us that they couldn't enjoy the sight of another woman?

I thought back over the last week. It was normal for me to notice and appreciate good looking guys around campus without having any intent or interest in ever seeing or speaking to them again. Making observations like this were a normal part of human nature, whether it is someone having nice eyes or a strong, sexy stature.

I tried to remember the last time I noticed something like that and came up blank. I looked around the room at the herds of men. They may as well all have had the same face, because they all drew the same reaction from me. Then I imagined what it would be like if they were all naked and trying desperately to draw my attention. I could completely understand why Embry and Jacob were so uncomfortable.

"What can I get you to drink?" a half-naked waitress asked.

Jacob didn't as much as look up from the drink menu. "Three Red Snappers and a Crown and Coke," he mumbled.

"Same," Embry said flatly.

Hannah and I ordered a couple of Jager Bombs and fruity drinks. _Maybe coming here wasn't such a good idea._

"We can go somewhere else if you want," I said, trying to convey how 'okay' I was with the idea of leaving.

They both looked at me then each other and mumbled "Naah," and, "It's cool," at the same time.

If they were willing to stay, then I was going to enjoy myself. Hannah and I tossed back our shots then I pulled her by the hand to come with me. It didn't take long to find the sexiest girl in the place. I admired her body from a barstool at the edge of the stage – her long, tan legs, full breasts, then she turned around and I got a look at her plump ass. _Too bad you can't touch…or slap. _

I slid a $20 into her garter. "Come see me when you're done," I said, pointing to our table not far from where we were. She nodded.

"Pick one," I instructed Hannah.

She looked around for a minute and both our eyes landed on the same hot pink top that barely covered the nicest rack ever implanted. "That one," she said playfully.

"Good choice," I conceded.

We made our way to her and Hannah shyly followed the same procedure I had, not making eye contact as she slid her hand beneath the simple, black strip of elastic to tuck the bill against the girl's skin.

We had lap dances from the girls we'd selected. The guys still looked like they were in pain.

"What do you guys say we go put that hot tub on the terrace to good use?" I asked with enthusiasm.

Their faces lit up. "Let's go!" Embry said with more energy than I'd heard him use all night.

We all stumbled out to the limo after being at the club for less than an hour. More shots were poured on the way back. The boys slowly returned to their normal demeanor the farther away we got.

Once back in our room, I started the hot tub. I loaned Hannah the less sexy of the two swimsuits I'd brought. It was still very attractive on her, but mine fit me better. The bottoms were Brazilian cut with ties on the side and the triangle top was so tiny it was likely that Jacob would never let it be worn in public. I was the last one to get in the hot tub. My mess of curls needed some attention.

Once I was as tamed as I would ever be, I brought a fresh round of drinks to the table that was fixed to the side and got in, watching Jacob's eyes take in every inch of me as I approached. It amazed me how he could turn me on _so_ much with just a _look_.

I took this as a sign that he was back to his normal – though pretty intoxicated – self. Hannah gave me a look of her own and I wished Jacob would approve of me having my way with her.

I sat in Jacob's lap, my back pressed against his impressive chest. I was consumed by the alcohol and heat – both Jacob's and the water. This euphoric, relaxing buzz flowed through my body. Jacob's hands rested against my stomach, keeping me pressed against him tightly. My head rested against his shoulder. His mouth – hot and wet from the steam – occasionally kissed my neck. We talked for a few minutes about nothing in particular until Hannah decided to take the conversation to something a bit less casual.

She looked straight at me through heavily hooded eyes. Her hair was damp around the edges, clinging to her face and neck, adding to how delicious she looked already. "Have you ever…kissed a girl?" Her voice was seductive, clearly implying her desires.

"More than that," I replied. I didn't want to spill the details of my one night stand with the nomad and Warren.

I felt a hand that was much too small to be Jacob's slide from my knee to halfway up my thigh. _This is not good_. I was inches from the point of no return. My hand rushed up the hem of Jacob's trunks in search of skin. I showed him the four of us; how Hannah and I were completely submerged in the water from the neck down, and you couldn't see anything but bubbles, steam, and our faces. He hesitated for a minute. He and Embry shared a questioning glance, and then a single nod.

"You win," Jacob whispered into my ear. _SWEET!_

I gave him a short but deep, open-mouthed kiss. I leaned forward just a little and touched her stomach. "Have you?" I asked. Through the steam I could see her eyes fix on my mouth. She shook her head. "Do you want to?"

Our faces inched closer together. She closed the tiny gap, pressing her lips to mine. Her mouth opened after a couple of seconds and our tongues moved as one, exploring and tasting. It was wet and hot and fucking delicious. She came closer and our hands moved all over each other's bodies.

I followed Hannah's lead since she was new to this. I didn't want to push her or make her uncomfortable. I gasped into her mouth when she slid my bikini top to the side under the water and played with my breast. I did the same to her in return. I broke the kiss and dragged my mouth down her neck. Her breathing was coming out in pants.

One of my hands rested between her thighs. Even in the hot water I could tell she was warmer there.

My lips came to her ear and licked. "Can I?" I asked. My voice was low and filled with desire.

"Yes," she panted. The sound of it was so sexy.

I moved the little piece of fabric that was covering her aside and let my fingers glide down the slick slit. She grabbed my face and pressed my mouth to hers roughly, moaning into the kiss. My rhythm increased, earning another loud moan.

Her hand slid down from my breast and rubbed me from outside my swimsuit. I sucked in a sharp breath and dipped my fingers into her body, curling them into that spot I knew would feel best. Finally, she snaked her fingers into my bottoms and I whimpered. We were both panting and rocking our hips against each other's ministrations.

Hot hands grasped my ass roughly. I felt bad for leaving Jacob there to just watch without receiving any attention. I pulled my face from hers for long enough to look at him. His eyes were dark and so incredibly sexy. The look he gave me made my body catch fire even more than they already were.

Hannah was getting closer and closer to the edge. I wasn't far behind her. I rested my forehead against her temple. "I want to taste you," I murmured against her ear.

She nodded.

In one quick motion, I had her sitting on the corner ledge of the hot tub, legs spread wide. I knew she was wet from when I felt her under the water, but smelling her arousal was something entirely different. It was _such_ a turn on.

I kissed her once more before kissing my way down to her cleavage. I made sure Jacob didn't see anything he didn't want to, moving her bikini top to the side, and then immediately covering her peak with my mouth. I rubbed her clit from outside her bikini while licking and nipping her breasts.

I replaced the bikini top and kissed down her stomach and over her bottoms until I reached my final destination. My hands worked over her thighs and grabbed her ass firmly while my tongue teased from the outside of the thin fabric.

I quickly moved the little scrap to the side and covered her with my mouth. Her whimpers got loud at once when my tongue flicked her clit rapidly. The taste was so erotic, I had to have more. I licked from the top of her slit, down over her soaking center, and all the way back to just before her ass. Her body squirmed and her hips bucked into my face.

My attention returned to the spot I knew felt best – that swollen, hot nub. My tongue thrashed her and my fingers dipped and curled into her G-spot. She was so close and completely lost in the sensation. Jacob's hot hand started touching me beneath the water. I moaned and rocked into his fingers while working to bring Hannah over the edge. I wanted to fuck him while doing this to her, but I knew it wouldn't happen.

Her hands gripped my hair tightly and her hips ground against my mouth at the height of her climax.

The second she was done, Jacob pulled me into his lap, straddling me across his hips. He kissed me fiercely while burying himself inside me. His hands moved my hips but I needed more. I needed hard and fast.

He carried me to our bed without me having to say a word. Hot, wet lips moved around my neck and breasts while he fucked me just the way I wanted. Having his body against mine was heaven. My hands grasped and felt everywhere they could reach…his thick arms, his strong back, ripped chest, and his face when it wasn't pressed against me.

After my first earth-moving orgasm, his movements slowed. Instead of fucking me, he loved me. I could even see the difference in his eyes, feel it in my bones. The look on his face made me shiver with desire. Our hot, sweat-covered bodies moved together beautifully, each thrust a profession of love. Our grunts, moans, and screams were replaced with I love you's and gasps between deep kisses.

We stayed that way for hours, focusing on feeling and being together rather than the climax, although there were plenty of those.

The next morning was so nice. It was just the two of us, alone in the room, with nothing to do until the afternoon. We hung out and watched TV, both of us half naked. It felt so good to curl into his boxer-clad side on the sofa. I could tell he enjoyed my thong and tank top ensemble by the looks he was giving me.

I was so comfortable around him. It was odd, but somehow perfect. He didn't feel like a stranger. It was like he was a part of me that I never knew I had, but had been missing my entire life

I knew it wouldn't be long before I told my family about him. He completed me and made life seem so much better. _I_ wanted to be better, to do better for myself and for him. I wanted to live a normal, happy life. That included bridging the gap between my parents and me.

I didn't think they'd be too thrilled with the idea of me being with anyone besides a vamp, but I'd try my hardest to gain their approval without being a brat.

First I'd have to ease Mom into it, and then Dad.

**A/N: Ness is such a dirty girl. I'm embarrassed that such vulgarity comes from my imagination. I'll use my "I was pregnant when I wrote this" cop-out. But who am I kidding…I love it! Hope you're not annoyed by Embry imprinting. Rampant imprinting in a fic irks me, but this one just felt right. **

**Reviews will be responded to with a teaser of the next chapter. And I promise you won't be disappointed. **

**If you haven't already, check out Kimber's POV companion story, Maniacal: Second Chances. It's listed on my profile under My Stories. **


	14. She asked for it

**A/N: DeeDreamer and EssatheTwerp21…I'm so glad I have them. **

**I haven't said this in a while, but I'll go ahead and throw it out there (you know, just in case you were confused), I don't own Twilight. **

**There's something in this chapter that may not suit the tastes of all my kind readers. You'll know it when you see it. Feel free to skim or skip it entirely as it doesn't contribute much to the plot. **

**Chapter 14 – She asked for it **

**JPOV **

The weekend was going fantastic. It was so nice to spend time with my girl outside of campus and its surrounding area; our quality time together was limited there. Even when we weren't in a public setting, we were worried about her roommate busting in on us.

Here in our posh suite, I didn't have a care in the world. That was, until Ness fell asleep against me on the sofa after room service brought us lunch. Her fingers were entwined with mine; her body nestled perfectly into my side. It felt like heaven. And then her mind opened up and I saw her dreams.

Last time, I thought it had been _my_ dream. I should have known better. It was from this weird, completely different perspective – I was observing myself and Ness, but I was confused in reality. My feelings didn't match what was being reflected in the dream. It was like watching a show, except I was the viewer _and_ the actor simultaneously.

There was no doubt that what I was seeing this time was most definitely _not_ a dream. I was wide awake.

I wanted to move away from her, stop seeing everything I was being forced to see. But I couldn't bring myself to do it. I had to know. We had avoided all talks of anything specific about our families, but now I wished we had shared a little more because this was a lot to take in. I needed time to absorb this, to rationalize, to accept…but there was no time.

We were together on this awesome weekend away and I didn't want to ruin it, so I just watched…

A few familiar faces I had seen in the previous dream came out to the porch to greet us. Alice, Jasper, and Emmett introduced themselves to me. They were pleasant and welcoming.

Once inside, I was introduced to Esme and Carlisle. They were equally welcoming but a little hesitant. We took a couple of steps into the foyer and the two faces dreaded seeing most appeared – Bella and Edward. Bella was clearly a vampire. She had pale white skin and those weird, golden eyes that all the Cullens had, not the rich brown ones that were a perfect replica of my Ness's.

Her attention focused to Edward. I could feel Ness's anxiety even through the dream. He looked me square in the eyes for a long moment before speaking, "It's nice to finally meet you, Jacob. My daughter has told us so much about you."

I was torn. Half of me wanted to get up and run, but the other half needed to know more. I couldn't keep watching. I had to stop. I felt nauseous.

Very gently, I moved Ness so that she was lying on the sofa. I grabbed one of the liquor bottles from the night before and went out to the terrace for some air. Sobriety wasn't a good idea right now. I needed the distraction of liquor; I had to get my shit together before Ness woke up. This weekend was all about her and us, not about who her parents may or may not be.

Who was I kidding? There was no doubt about it. Ness was a Cullen. But how in the fuck did she grow to look like she was in her early twenties when it hadn't been that long since she was born?

I knew none of it mattered and ultimately I'd love her regardless. But did she have to be a _Cullen_?

_Oh the irony…_

I hoped to at least have a buzz before Ness woke up. I wasn't prepared to deal with this. I wouldn't bring it up while we were in Atlanta, maybe on the way home. My nerves were so rattled that I didn't even notice her presence until she was standing right next to me, looking at the bottle in my hand curiously.

I forced a smile and shrugged. "Just getting started early, want some?"

She grinned sleepily. "Naah, that stuff tastes terrible. I'll make myself something. I'm going to get dressed." She kissed my cheek and walked back inside.

The center of my universe was not only half my natural enemy, but the daughter of the only other woman I'd ever had feelings for. But those feelings paled _drastically_ in comparison to what I felt for Ness. Childish infatuation couldn't hold a candle to true love, especially not the love I held for my imprint.

I couldn't believe it. No way was it possible. It'd only been six years or so since I left. _Or was it seven?_ Maybe she just knew them or something. That would make sense. Maybe they adopted her, like they did the rest of them.

I couldn't _not_ know.

I walked inside and found her taking a shower. Through the glass shower door, I could see her gorgeous curves, naked and covered with water. Under different circumstances I probably would have invited myself to join her, but I couldn't.

"Hey babe?" I called to her.

"Yeah?" she responded pleasantly.

"Are your parents your biological parents?" I tried to sound casual, merely curious.

"Yeah, why?" She didn't sound suspicious.

"Just wondering. I don't know much about them. What's your dad's name?"

"Edward."

Just then, she opened the shower and started drying her body. I took a long look at the face I'd already memorized, yet somehow never made the connection. She was an even mix of both of them. Bella's deep brown eyes, Edward's hair color, Bella's lips and nose, Edward's cheeks and jaw structure. _Impossible_.

"You're acting weird. What's wrong?" She stopped towel drying her hair, waiting for my response.

Pushing my dilemma away, I grinned. "I was thinking about something, but then this _sexy_ ass naked girl was standing in front of me." It was partly true at least.

None of it mattered. I was in love with her and would deal with whatever obstacles we came to, even if it meant facing people that most likely hated me…the people that I still despised.

She dropped her towel and immediately my eyes went to those perfect breasts.

"Just wait until you see my outfit," she said sexily, wagging her brows. _Too fucking hot_.

My bottle of Jack and I waited for her to get ready on the terrace. I killed half the bottle before long and just as I hoped, it killed all thoughts of her parents. My personal Heaven called for me from inside and I went to her eagerly. Alcohol tended to make me one horny bastard.

She stood with her hands on her hips looking like the sexiest little vixen I'd ever seen. Her hair was a little more tousled than usual, her makeup heavier with lots on those beautiful eyes. Her top was a shiny, black leather corset, and the plaid skirt fell just low enough to keep her ass covered. Those smooth thighs were covered in black fishnets and her lace up boots came to her knees. _Fuck_.

She sauntered to me and guided my ear to her mouth with her hand. "You know what I want…_Alpha_."

She called me Alpha. _Alpha_. She'd be saying that over and over again shortly.

It was a good thing I'd killed so much Jack. It would make it a lot easier to let the wolf take over. I wanted to be rough and I knew she wanted it, too. I'd seen it in her fantasies, but now I could see it in her eyes.

I pulled her against my chest and kissed her hungrily. My hands slid down, pulling her skirt up to lay a rough slap across her ass. She whimpered into my mouth – but not from pain – so I did it again on the other side.

I paused and thought for a second if I really wanted to demean the love of my life. She wasn't Kimber or some random girl from a party. She was my _everything_. New fantasies that weren't my own came to the forefront of my mind, whether she intended them to or not.

It was all the confirmation I needed.

"Get on your knees," I said roughly against her lips, letting the Alpha take center stage. A tiny part of me felt guilty for it, but overall I was just really fucking turned on when she dropped in an instant right there in the living area and looked up at me with anticipation and desire in her eyes.

I unbuckled my belt and tossed it aside. "Take 'em off," I said, bringing my crotch closer to her face. Her hands immediately unbuttoned my jeans. "Use your teeth."

She bit down on my zipper and pulled it down slowly while gazing up at me. My pants fell, freeing my erection though it was still confined in my boxers.

"Finish taking my clothes off."

She did so, sliding her hands along my legs and pelvis as she moved. When she finished, she looked up at me, awaiting further instruction. I was more turned on than I had _ever_ been.

A little bit of pre-cum seeped out of my shaft. "Lick it off."

Her tongue came out and lapped the drop. The little moan she released as she savored the taste of my fluid made my body need much more than this teasing.

"Suck my fucking cock, Ness," I said hoarsely.

Her eyes stayed focused on mine as she took all of me down her throat and back out over and over. One of her hands played with my balls while the other caressed my thighs. I was in fucking _paradise_. She was getting a kick out of this too, the smell of her arousal kept getting stronger and stronger.

"Play with your pussy, baby," I grunted.

She complied; the hand on my thigh leaving and going between her widely spread legs. Her moans against my dick sent me to a higher level of pleasure. I let myself enjoy the feeling of her mouth for a few more minutes, keeping my eyes closed so I could focus completely on the mind-blowing satisfaction she was giving me.

I pulled out of her mouth. "Go to the bed," I commanded.

She got up and walked in front of me. I lifted her skirt as she walked so I could get a glimpse of the perfection that was her ass. Her fishnets stopped right at the top of her thighs and the thong she had on may as well have been made of shoestrings.

She stopped beside the bed and I climbed in. "Take off your skirt." It was sexy, but an obstacle I didn't feel like dealing with. The corset was too fucking hot to take off. I could work around that.

Once the fabric fell to the floor, I grabbed her by the hips and lay with my back on the bed, bringing her ass to my face, taking a look at that sweet center of hers. It was already so wet; making her cum would be _too_ easy.

"Can I—"

"Finish sucking my cock," I interrupted. I knew that's what she was going to ask anyway. That was the first time she'd spoken since I'd let the Alpha out. He was in total control now. There was no little voice; it was all Alpha.

After a couple of minutes of me flicking Ness's clit with my tongue, I could tell she was on the edge of orgasm. Her hips were bucking wildly and her moans against my cock kept getting louder and louder.

"Do not orgasm, Ness." It was cruel, but I was _really_ enjoying watching her writhe and practically scream with my dick in her mouth. She didn't acknowledge my command, but I knew she couldn't cum until I told her to. My fingers pressed against her g-spot while my tongue battered her clit. She took my cock out of her mouth a couple of times to gasp and scream, but I wasn't having it.

I slapped her ass hard. "Don't stop."

She asked for the Alpha, she got it.

Ness moved frantically up and down my cock, bringing me so close to eruption. Her legs were shaking and every labored breath came with a loud moan against my shaft.

"Stop," I said against her pink lips. She sucked one last time as she pulled my cock out of her mouth and sat propped on her elbows, her ass still hovering above my head. I flicked her clit for another moment, eliciting more screams. My hand moved into her corset and pinched her taught nipple roughly while the other hand laid a couple of sharp slaps across her ass.

"Are you ready to cum?" I asked while plunging my fingers into her center.

"Yes…Please…Oh God…Make me cum," she screamed, legs shaking.

I slapped her ass one more time. "Cum, Ness," I commanded. My tongue went right back to her pussy and less than two seconds later she was losing herself to her orgasm. Her body shook and she screamed my name mixed with profanities. I thought her legs would never stop trembling. It was the most intense orgasm I'd ever witnessed. She collapsed against my torso. Her breathing was still shaky and labored.

"I'm not finished with you. Get on my cock and ride it."

She complied willingly, though she was still coming down from her orgasm. Her eyes rolled back as she slid down my shaft the first time and she sat there – filled to the hilt – for a moment, relishing the feeling. The sight wasn't quite complete. I couldn't see those perfect, gorgeous breasts.

"Take off your corset."

She opened her eyes and there was a fire in them I'd never seen before. The corset disappeared instantly, as did her tiny thong.

She began grinding and bouncing up and down roughly. It felt fucking fantastic, but what was more enjoyable was the sight of her…the way she looked so deep in the moment, the way her tits bounced as she moved, her hair everywhere, the sound of her moans. It was all so unreal.

And she was _mine_.

I flipped us over so that I was on top of her. The Alpha in me enjoyed bossing her around, but now he wanted to fucking _claim_ her.

I flung her legs on my shoulders and pounded into her over and over. My eyes locked on hers and I'm pretty sure they held the same fire that hers had. The need to flat out fuck her took over my whole body, starting at my groin and ending at my fingers and toes.

"What am I, Ness?" I growled.

"My Alpha," she panted.

"Louder!"

"You're my fucking Alpha," she screamed.

Hearing her say it like that gave me more satisfaction than I ever dreamed it would.

"Say it again."

"My Alpha," she moaned loudly. "Please…make me cum."

I gripped her by the hips and brought us down to the floor. I wanted this _hard_ and the plush mattress was too forgiving. I drilled into her repeatedly, drawing out loud moans, bringing her closer to what she begged for.

"Cum with me," I grunted.

I didn't think the Alpha command could actually make someone climax, but it did. I buried myself inside her completely and she shook and screamed. Feeling her orgasm intensified my own.

When we came back down to earth, we just laid in the floor, panting, covered in sweat. Ness curled against my frame. Neither of us spoke for a few minutes. Reality slowly came back to me. The wolf was definitely sated.

"Ness?"

"Hmm?" she replied, not even lifting her head from my chest to meet my gaze.

"Did I hurt you?"

She made a contented sound then laughed lightly. "I'll take that kind of pain _any_ day."

**A/N: Reviews are appreciated :-)**


	15. And all things will end

**A/N: Thanks to DeeDreamer and EssatheTwerp21 for keeping me in line. **

**I don't own Twilight. **

**Chapter 15 – And all things will end**

**NPOV**

The concert was awesome. We missed most of the opening acts, but it was definitely a worthy trade. The weekend had been the best of my entire life. Jacob made me happy on a level I never knew existed. Everything about him made me smile.

I was fairly certain that he was holding back on the amount of sex we had so I wouldn't get the wrong idea. Back on campus, we'd be able to cuddle up and talk for hours at the dorm or on a blanket in the park, and so I did everything I could to break him down. I wanted to get my fill before having to go back to the dorm where we would be limited to quickies and muffling ourselves. Sure, I also wanted to talk to him for hours, but we had forever for that – a forever I now gladly accepted and looked forward to.

I was spinning in my own happy little bubble, where nothing mattered or existed except me and Jacob. That was, until room service brought in breakfast and the Sunday paper.

I was pulling my chair up to the table in our suite when I glanced at the front page and saw six girls with red-brown hair looking back at me, one I recognized immediately as Kimber. The headline read 'HAVE YOU SEEN US?'

I skimmed through the article, frozen with shock. Girls all over Athens were dying their red or brown hair light blonde. Police were searching for the girls but had no leads or traces of their whereabouts. There wasn't any sign of forced kidnapping so they weren't calling it that yet, but I had a feeling that the police were only trying to keep panic from spreading across campus, and scaring away potential new students.

Six girls with similar features all went missing in the same week. It was too much to be a coincidence. They disappeared without a trace.

"You okay? What are you reading?" Jacob cocked his head and finally noticed what had me so entranced.

Less than two seconds later, he was on the phone.

"Em, we gotta go NOW." The Alpha tone was so intense it made me flinch even though he wasn't talking to me. "Get up and get the fuck to Athens….Just do it. I'll call you from the car. Go now." He turned to face me. "Help me get our shit together."

I just nodded and ran to the bedroom. We threw our clothes in bags, paying no attention to what was clean or dirty or to whom it belonged. We were checking out of the hotel just a few minutes later. Jacob almost ran over the valets as he hauled ass out of the parking lot.

Finally, we could talk.

"I think it's Warren," I said. I wanted to pretend otherwise, but there was no other explanation. I hadn't heard from him since the last time I'd seen him, and he was more than capable of taking countless girls captive without anyone noticing him.

"I do, too," he grumbled.

Jacob's mind was somewhere far away. He snapped into reality and pulled out his phone. His conversation with Embry was brief and to the point.

"You can't do this alone. I don't doubt you or Embry, but Warren could have help on his side. You can't risk it. I have a big family. They can be here in two hours. This is all my fault; can they please help?" I pleaded. I knew Jacob could handle Warren, but if he'd rounded up others to help him then he and Embry would be on a suicide mission.

He didn't even look at me. "No," he said flatly.

"Don't be stubborn!" I yelled. "Warren is a lot stronger than me. I can't help you—"

"Now's not the time to get into all the gory details, but I know your family. I'm not being stubborn. I know your father and he would _love_ to let Warren rip me to shreds. He'd probably even help him out."

I was shocked: Stunned. "How do you know them?" I asked weakly.

"I was friends with your mom before she was changed, Ness." He finally looked at me. "How old are you?"

_Fuck_.

"Will it change the way you feel about me?"

His hand rubbed my arm lightly. "No, I swear."

I stared at my hands in my lap. "Technically, I'm seven." I felt defeated. I couldn't lie to him about anything. I wanted him to know, planned to tell him eventually, but not like this.

"I…I left the day you were born. I haven't spoken to the…Cullens since that day."

He really did know my family. I'd never referred to our real last name. He knew me as Renesmee Mason.

"We can't talk about this right now. I can't have you hating me again," Jacob continued.

"I'll never hate you. I swear." No matter what the hell happened seven years ago, I knew what I said was the truth. There was no way I could hate him for anything, _especially_ something that was done before I was even born.

"Just not now, okay?"

I nodded. "Jake, if you and Embry handle this alone, who will protect me and Hannah?" I asked sincerely. My concern was primarily for him, but if I could play on his weaknesses, maybe he'd bend and let me call my family.

He slumped in his seat and didn't speak. He knew I was right.

"I'm calling my parents," I said with finality.

I pulled my cell from the deep recesses of my purse only to find it dead. _Perfect_. I didn't use it much lately. Jacob was about the only person I ever called or texted and we'd been together since early Friday, so I'd forgotten all about it. I plugged it into the charger on the dash and waited anxiously.

And waited…

And waited…

Finally the stupid thing turned on. Before I could dial, notifications started popping up. Ninety nine texts and my voicemail box was full. _Great_. I dialed my mom. She picked up instantly.

"Renesmee? Thank God you're okay! Where are you?" She was panicked.

"I'm on my way back to campus. Alice knew where I'd be all weekend. Look, I need all of you to come down to Athens right now, okay?"

"We're already here. How much longer until you arrive?"

I glanced at Jacob. He whispered, "Twenty minutes."

"Who's that?" Mom asked.

I rolled my eyes. I wasn't sure how to approach this at all. "I sort…of met a guy."

I heard a sharp gasp on the other line, followed by a long pause. "Is he human? Tell me he's not human. _Please_, Renesmee."

"He's not. You're going to meet him when we get back." I paused for a second to gather what little nerve I could. "I need you to know that I love him. He's who I want as my mate, always. No matter what, I need you to accept this, okay? Same goes for Dad and everyone else. I don't want any fighting, at least not right now. We'll deal with any issues after this whole mess is taken care of. Okay?" My tone was insistent and firm, but not harsh.

"Of course, why wouldn't I? As long as he makes you happy."

I smiled; the first one in what seemed like days. "I really am." Jacob smiled too, but I could tell he was still worried how they would react when he saw them. "Umm…why are you in Athens, anyway?"

"Alice hasn't seen you in a couple of weeks. Warren either. Then this morning she saw Warren and these girls." Her voice was broken and pained. "It was sickening. Your father nearly collapsed when he saw you…you…God, Renesmee, you were next," she whispered.

"But the vision changed since we decided to leave. Alice doesn't see your funeral anymore so that's a good sign. We've been so worried. Hurry up and get here. Will your new friend be helping us?"

Mom was such a mixed up ball of emotions. On one hand, I could hear that she felt relieved and was sure that everything was fine, but on the other I could tell she was still freaking out about what could happen. _I_ knew everything would be fine.

"Yes. He has a friend joining him as well. There's a human with us that needs to be kept safe, too."

"Don't worry; we'll take care of it. Do you have any idea where Warren is? Alice can't tell. It's a house in the woods but that could be anywhere."

"Can she tell me anything about it? Wall color? Structural features?"

"She said there's not much furniture, a purple comforter on a queen size bed, stonework around the fireplace, a Led Zeppelin poster on one wall—"

"FUCK!" I yelled. "They are at _my_ fucking house! I'll be there in a few minutes." I hung up. "I'm coming with you, don't fight me on this."

Jacob chuckled. "No you're not. Even if I let you, your dad won't."

"We'll see." I folded my arms childishly.

I spent the next ten minutes fuming. I trusted that fucker and he was going to kill me. Who knows what he did to those poor girls…to Kimber? I hoped and prayed they were alive at least.

My hand was on the door handle before the car came to a complete stop. Jacob grabbed my left arm as I tried to hop out. His face was pained.

"I love you. So much. You have no idea how much. If you love me at all, you will do what I tell you to and stay right beside me unless I tell you otherwise. Please do this for me." My heart soared. I couldn't say no to him and it had nothing to do with him being Alpha.

"I will."

He pulled me across his lap and crushed his hot lips to mine. His large hands held me close to him. It wasn't long enough, though. He pulled us out of the car and over to Embry who had just pulling into the parking lot. He ran to Jacob looking panicked.

"I can't leave Hannah. I—"

Jacob held his hand up and Embry stopped talking. "I can't explain it all right now, but the…" He paused and gritted his teeth, "Cullens are here and they're going to keep Ness and Hannah safe," he said as we all practically ran inside.

"Wait…Ness…_Cullen_?" Embry asked, eyeing me curiously.

"Not now," Jacob spat.

My heart pounded as we got closer to my room. I could smell my family before the elevator even opened. This was really happening. I wasn't sure what to be more worried about; the fucked up Warren situation or my family seeing Jacob.

The elevator doors opened and my Aunt Alice was standing right in front of them. The expression on her face was one I'd never seen before. She looked completely shocked and surprised and absolutely speechless. She stared at Jacob then at me, then back at Jacob. Her eyes were saucers.

"Well that explains a lot," she said distantly. "Not now, come on," she said, talking more to herself than to us.

I stopped outside my door and told Jacob, Hannah, and Embry to wait in the hall for a second, took a deep breath, and walked in.

I stood tall and strong, facing my family's intense gaze. "The person you are about to meet is tremendously important to me. Whatever happened in the past is the past…leave it there. Now isn't the time to deal with it."

My eyes landed on my father. He already knew. His lips were curled into a bitter snarl. "Let's get this over with so we can deal with Warren."

I rolled my eyes at my dad and opened the door, gesturing for the three in the hall to enter my already crowded room. Jacob's arm was around me at once. He nodded in the general direction of my family. "It's uh…nice to see you all again."

"You _imprinted_ on my daughter?" Dad hissed, making the words sound like something vile and disgusting.

I was standing before a room filled with wide eyes and open mouths. There were inaudible whispers.

"Not now," Carlisle interjected. It was rare for him to step into an argument between my father and I. "Renesmee, you and your human friend will stay here with Rose, Esme, and your mother. No argument. Now tell us how to get to your house."

I looked at Jacob. I'd promised to follow his orders. He nodded in agreement with Carlisle.

"I know the way. We'll talk strategy en route," Jacob said with authority. "Stay here please. I'll be back soon. I promise."

We shared a hot kiss – my father muttering obscenities from the hall – before they left. It was quiet for what felt like hours, though it was probably more like five minutes.

Rosalie broke the silence first. "I think I follow everything so far, but where do you fit into the picture?" she asked Hannah.

I wanted to laugh. Of all the questions she could have asked…

Hannah looked at me shyly. Rose was being nice, but even nice Rose was scary.

"She's Embry's imprint. And Hannah, don't pay attention to what my father said. He's an ass. Oh, and he reads minds so um…the other night, don't…well, you'd be doing me a huge favor if you tried to avoid thinking about _anything_ we did this weekend."

She blushed and shifted her eyes to the ground. I moved to sit beside her on Ella's bed and touched her cheek. _Is it too late?_

"Pretty much," she replied.

I showed her the hot tub.

"I didn't know. I couldn't help it. Those jeans you're wearing…" She was whispering but it wouldn't do any good.

_They can hear you. _

She blushed even brighter. "Anything else I should know?" I shook my head and embraced her. "When will they be back?" She was nearly in tears.

"They will be fine. They are strong, as is the rest of our family. Jacob and Embry have fought with us before and we won. They've beat numerous vampires on their own. There's no need to worry," Esme consoled.

"Yeah. If you want to worry about something, worry about the inevitable battle between Edward and Jacob," Rosalie chuckled. I shot her a pointed glare.

"That's not going to happen," Mom said, rolling her eyes.

I wasn't that worried about the fight that was probably happening as we spoke, and Dad would just have to get over his problem with Jacob. We didn't live anywhere near each other and had very little communication, so even if he did hate Jacob, it wasn't something I'd have to deal with often.

The next fifteen minutes were spent in silence. Everyone but Hannah knew everything would turn out fine, but we still couldn't help but worry.

Esme's phone finally broke the silence. We all sat still with baited breath as she answered.

**A/N: The chapter title is an Avenged Sevenfold song that inspired a lot of this plotline. **

**Chapter two of Maniacal: Second Chances (Kimber's POV) has been posted. It corresponds with this one, and no reading ahead! It's listed in 'My Stories' on my ff profile.**

**Review and/or retweet for a teaser of chapter 16! **


	16. The Nameless

**Chapter 16 – The Nameless**

**Sorry for the delay. My hubby had some pretty scary health issues this past week and I've been taking care of him. He's better now. **

**I said this at the end of 'Second Chances' but a lot of you aren't reading it (or if you are, you're not reviewing! Tsk tsk). This story ****won't**** contain expressed sexual assault, rape, murder, etc. It may be implied, alluded to, grazed over, mentioned, etc. but it won't ever be blatantly written out with all the gory details. **

**This chapter gets pretty dark. These missing girls weren't at a Day Spa… **

**JPOV **

Jasper instructed everyone to get in the monstrous SUV they apparently drove to get here. I wasn't expecting a warm welcome back into their lives or anything, but Edward wasn't as accepting as the others. None of them seemed too thrilled to see me, but they weren't _snarling_ at me either.

Doc programmed the address into the GPS and hauled ass to the house in the woods. We spent a couple of minutes going over our method of attack and forming a back-up plan in the event that Warren had help, which wasn't likely according to Edward. I hoped the planning would take longer so there wouldn't be much time for other discussions, but it turned out that it doesn't take much strategy when there were five vamps and two wolves against one psycho.

Carlisle had us positioned in the car so that I was in the third row of seats and Edward was riding shotgun. Good idea. The silence didn't linger for long before Edward turned around in his seat and glared at me. Carlisle must have used his mind to tell him to behave or something because he huffed and turned back around.

I figured I might as well take the opportunity to tell him how I felt since Carlisle had him behaving for the time being…

_I love her, Edward. And she loves me_. I thought about the times we'd laughed together, her dreams, the way she smiled at me, the warm, complete feeling she gave me._ She wants you to accept me. I've seen it in her dreams. It matters to her a lot more than you probably think. _I thought about the first one, the ring I'd seen and Edward coming out to greet us.

_I'm good for her. I can protect her. I make her happy. She tells me that, ya know…that I make her happy. Not that I need her to tell me. I can feel it myself, like she's a part of me. She says she's never felt like this for anyone, that she didn't think she was capable of loving someone like this. _

Edward let out a deep breath but showed no other acknowledgement that he heard anything I was thinking. Maybe it was doing some good.

I thought about the way she looks at me so lovingly, the way it makes my heart stammer. I thought about how she skips over to me excitedly every day when I meet her outside her last class…the way she always squeezes me one last time before pulling away from a hug…all the times she curls into me and falls asleep…how she trusts me. There was no denying the intensity of our feelings for each other.

Edward wasn't responding, which I hoped was a good sign. I kept running over the time I'd spent with Ness until we pulled to the side of the road where we'd decided we'd go the rest of the way on foot. This bastard wasn't getting away. The seven of us went our separate directions and ran quietly but quickly through the woods to the house. We had every angle covered. The _bastard_ would not get by us.

The nauseating stench of rotting corpse hit me before I saw it. Twenty feet to my left was a pale, naked body lying in an unnatural position, tossed into the woods like garbage. I couldn't stop to see if she was alive, although it was pretty evident that she wasn't. Our first job was to find the bastard and kill him before he had a chance to do any further damage.

Emmett, Carlisle, and I were coming around the back of the house as Warren was being pursued by Edward and Embry from the front. He was stopped dead in his tracks by the three of us. Emmett and I ripped his body to pieces while Alice started a fire just outside the sliding glass door. It was a surprisingly quick process. I was hoping to take some aggression out on the bastard, but he didn't even put up a fight.

"He knew he didn't have a chance," Edward said, answering my thoughts. "You need to come with me. There's a girl inside. I think she knows you."

"There's a survivor?" I asked as we ran into the house.

"Only one."

Inside the house looked like a scene straight out of a horror movie. Blood was everywhere…on the walls, the floor, and what little furniture that remained standing. The smell of death heavy in the air.

I entered the living room and that's when I saw her: Kimber's eyes and lips were swollen shut. She was lying on a stripped, blood stained mattress. Bruises, blood, and cuts covered her entire body; some fresh, some beginning to heal, some infected. One of her legs was twisted and obviously broken. It was a miracle she had survived. A torn sheet was covering part of her naked, ravaged body. She was shaking but it couldn't have been because she was cold. The house was hot as hell.

She wasn't exactly on my list of favorite people these days, but I did still care about her on some level. We had been friends for a long time. It sickened me to see her like this. I felt tears building behind my eyes and let them come. No one deserved to be tortured like this.

Nausea overwhelmed me and I barely made it to the back door before my breakfast spilled out. I fell to my knees in anguish.

I felt responsible for this. If Embry and I had done more, these girls wouldn't be dead…Kimber wouldn't be practically dead. I thanked my lucky stars that I'd at least managed to keep Ness safe.

"Jacob, we need you to talk to her. She's conscious but scared and edging on shock. A familiar voice would help tremendously," Carlisle said.

I looked up at him from the ground. "What do I say to her? The last time we spoke wasn't exactly pleasant."

"Edward says she wishes you were here, that she was praying you'd come help her before we got to the house. She needs you."

I stood and tried to take a cleansing breath to help pull myself together, but it only filled my senses with that nightmarish smell. I walked back to where she lay and sat beside the mattress in the floor.

"Can I touch her hand?"

"I wouldn't right now. She's been…through a lot. It might make things worse."

"Did he…force her?" I asked shakily.

Carlisle shook his head. "He was about to, but apparently he used the other girls to satisfy his urges."

"He knew he'd hurt her. He was holding off…until she was changed. But he had to find someone else to change her. He was afraid he wouldn't be able to stop," Edward informed us.

I sort of figured he had, judging by her appearance, but hearing that he hadn't made me feel slightly better. I wished I could take the pain for her, for all the girls. I couldn't break down right now. I had to be here for her.

"Kim…Kim, it's Jake. I'm going to keep you safe, okay?" I looked to Edward, who was standing in the corner across from me. _Tell me what she's thinking. What she wants to say._

He nodded. "Please don't leave," he said for her in a whisper so low she couldn't have heard him. The look on his face was one of misery. I'm sure seeing the things inside her mind was pretty hard.

"I'm not going anywhere, I promise. You're going to be fine. I'll stay with you as long as you need me."

"I'm not dead?" Edward continued speaking for her.

"You're alive. You're not going to die. There's a doctor here who's going to help you. I know him, he's a good man." It was so hard to look at her damaged face. I wanted to be strong for her. She couldn't see the tears running down my face, but I had to make an effort to keep my voice from showing my pain.

Her hand shook as it lifted from the bed. Instinctively, I took it into my own. She dropped hers back down and held onto mine weakly.

"I'm really sorry for the thing last week. I don't deserve to have you here," Edward said on Kimber's behalf.

"Don't worry about that. I hurt you_. I'm_ sorry."

Carlisle came back with Embry, both of them carrying armloads of medical supplies.

"Ask her if it's okay to give her morphine for the pain. Explain what's going on around her," Edward whispered.

"Embry's here, too. Everything is going to be fine. There are a lot of good people here to help you. The doctor, his name's Carlisle, can he give you some morphine for the pain?" I asked, fighting the shaking sound that wanted to escape my throat.

"Yes, please make it stop. Where is…" Edward choked on his words. He slid down the wall onto the floor. "I can't. Her memories…Jasper, I need you in here. Hold your breath."

Jasper came in looking as sick as the rest of us.

"Please help her…us," Edward asked. It sounded like he was crying.

"What was she saying, Edward?" I asked.

"She was asking where Warren was and thinking about how he wanted to…kill Renesmee. He…he called the other girls by her name when he—" He jumped off the ground and pulled Carlisle away from Kimber. It looked like he had been feeling around for a good vein to put the IV in. "The cold, Carlisle. It's scaring her. Let Jacob do it. The morphine will knock her out enough that the cold won't matter after that."

He handed me the little needle. I took it and must have looked pretty confused. "Like this," Carlisle said, prodding around on my forearm. "Here, feel this?" I pressed around and sort of figured out that there was a vein right there. "Then you slide it in like this." He stuck me with the one in my hand and demonstrated the angle and where to stop.

I still had no idea what I was doing, but I'd try. Edward handed me a fresh needle and I started feeling around Kimber's arm. I stuck her, hoping I did it right, and Carlisle finished up without touching her. Less than a minute later, her shaking stopped.

"Can you hear me?" I asked her.

"Yeah. I can't feel the pain anymore," Edward said, once again speaking for Kimber. "Jacob, we're going to have to take her home with us. You and Renesmee can come if either of you wishes, but Kimber needs more than what Carlisle can do here. He's going to get her cleaned up and fix her up as best he can, but we're leaving soon. Can you explain that to her?"

I reiterated what Edward said, leaving out the part about Ness coming.

"She understands but she's pretty out of it right now. Are you willing to be there for her until she's well enough to get by without you? You're all she has. We can't go to her parents and explain what she's been through," Edward said lowly.

What kind of man would I be if I said no? "Of course I will."

I held Kimber's hand while Carlisle worked on her. She wasn't awake but she still wouldn't let go. I told her I'd be there for her, and I would. Ness was a kindhearted person, she would understand. This wasn't about me loving Kimber or anything like that. This was me being a friend.

Doc stitched her newer wounds and cleaned and bandaged the ones that were beginning to heal. He splinted her mangled leg. Setting it would have to wait because, apparently, it had apparently been broken a few days ago and would require surgery. He explained everything to me, from the different types of medicines he put into her IV to the liquids he poured onto her wounds.

Esme and Rosalie finally arrived carrying more supplies and a gurney.

"Where's Ness?" I asked.

"_Not_ staying in the car," she said defiantly as she walked through the door with a pissed off Bella.

This place was enough to give _me_ nightmares; I couldn't blame them for wanting to keep her out. Ness slid down beside me on the floor and started crying as she looked at Kimber. I pulled her against my side.

"She's going to be alright," I said, kissing the top of her head. "I have to go to your family's house. Are you coming?"

She nodded and pecked my cheek. "I'm going to wait in the car."

I watched her walk out somberly and, looking around, noticed that the house was back to normal. There was no blood on the walls or floor. The place was completely empty and spotless with the exception of the broken girl lying on the mattress and the medical supplies that were spread all around her. The smell of death still lingered, but it wasn't quite as thick and was masked by the smell of bleach and ammonia.

The gurney barely fit into the back of the monstrous SUV that the Cullens had driven down. Kimber was completely out of it. Ness and I sat in the back seat so we could be close to her. Ness was pretty concerned. She and Kimber never got a chance to become good friends, but Ness was a compassionate, caring person. It could have been a stranger and she would have acted the same way.

During the ride back I learned that Emmett, Alice, and Embry had taken the bodies several miles down the road and left them behind a gas station. Someone would be horrified when they found them, but at least the families would be able to say goodbye and bury their children.

Surprisingly, none of the girls were bitten. That would have been a quick and fairly painless death. I'm sure whatever they endured was much worse.

Although it did make it so that their bodies could be returned instead of burned mercilessly with the pile of Warren's remains, the contents of the house, and the blood spattered leaves and branches they'd found in the woods from one girl's attempt to escape.

The bastard was dead, but I _really_ wished I could reassemble him and kill him over and over again. Death wasn't the right form of punishment. Vamps killed every day, and I hated it. But what he did was a thousand times worse than killing an innocent human. He violently raped and tortured them. I tried not to listen as the others described the things they saw. After everything I heard, I was thanking God that all I had to do was hold Kimber's hand while everyone else cleaned up the gruesome scene.

And that my Ness was safe…with me…always.

**A/N: The title of this chapter, The Nameless, is a Slipknot song that fits perfectly with this chapter. Read the lyrics for a peek inside the mind of an obsessed psychopath. **

**Chapter three of Maniacal: Second Chances corresponds with this one, so go check it out. **

**Follow me on twitter. Link in my profile. **

**Reviews/retweets get a teaser of chapter 17! **


	17. Decisions

**A/N: Thanks to my betas, EssatheTwerp21 and DeeDreamer. They are so encouraging and helpful! **

**There have been some questions as to where the Cullens live. I mentioned in one of the early chapters that they left Forks after Bella's change was complete, lived in Canada for a while, then moved to where they are now – somewhere in the Southeast that's never mentioned specifically.**

**Chapter 17 – Decisions**

**JPOV**

Ness didn't quite grasp the magnitude of what had happened until she came into the house and saw Kimber lying there half dead. Once we got to the Cullen home, we talked about it while waiting for Kimber to come around. We stayed with her every minute. Esme brought us dinner. I felt guilty for enjoying anything as I sat beside Kimber's bed. Ness barely ate, either. For some reason, she felt responsible for what had happened – that made two of us.

Even Edward felt a little guilty since he'd pushed Ness to take Warren to college with her. He never thought Warren would be capable of this. He never heard anything in his thoughts that could lead him to think he was a psycho who could rape and violently murder _anyone_, especially Ness.

I tried to focus my attention on Ness and Kimber instead of my own building guilt. They needed me.

The swelling had gone down a good bit since that morning. Kimber was still puffy but whatever Carlisle had put in her IV had helped a lot. She was able to open her eyes when she woke up. She slowly turned her head to look around and stopped when she saw me.

"Will you please tell me what the fuck is going on?" she mumbled. Her lips were still pretty swollen, making it hard for her to talk.

"Do you remember this morning?" I asked softly.

"Yes," she whimpered.

I held her hand. "We're at the doctor's house. He's Ness's grandfather. You're getting better. Ness and I are staying with you. Is there anything I can do to help? Do you want to talk? Are you in pain?"

"I hurt. Tell Ness I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Ness said softly, entering with Carlisle.

Carlisle stood beside Kimber and checked the bags of fluid. "Where does it hurt?" he asked quietly.

"All over, but mainly my leg," she groaned.

"We'll take care of that, dear. I need to check your wounds and possibly change your dressings. Would you be okay with Jacob stepping out for a moment?" Carlisle's tone was light and gentle.

"No. Jacob stays," Kimber said urgently. "He can just close his eyes or something."

I squeezed her hand just a little. "Okay, that's fine. I'll keep my eyes closed."

Ness kissed my cheek. "I'll be out in the hall."

"I'm going to touch your hand now, okay?"

She and Carlisle looked at each other as he ever so lightly grasped her hand in his. Kimber flinched on contact.

"Everything's fine, Kimber. It's me, Carlisle. Not the monster. I'm not going to harm you, I promise."

Kimber relaxed a little and nodded. "I'm sorry. I trust you, it's just…"

He brushed his hand across her forehead, moving hair from her face. "I completely understand…now then, are you ready?"

She replied with a small nod.

When the doc finished, he gave her more pain medicine and she fell back asleep. Alice and Jasper set up a bed for Ness and I to sleep on for the night. If Kimber woke up in the middle of the night, I didn't want her to wake up alone. I held Ness close and tried to fall asleep, but couldn't.

That morning, back in our suite in Atlanta, I had woken to Ness running open mouth kisses down my chest in a bed that was made for royalty. My life was pretty much perfect. Now here I was, at the Cullen's house, lying wide awake, thinking of all the nightmarish events that went on that day.

"Jacob."

"Jacob."

I thought someone was mumbling my name. I had barely slept and my subconscious was _not_ ready to let me wake.

"Please, Jake."

I snapped upright when my brain finally registered what was going on.

Edward flew in with a plastic trash can and got to Kimber just as she started heaving. Esme came in with her arms loaded with water, sheets, towels, and some clothes. I got up to stand beside Kimber and held her hair back. Everyone was avoiding physical contact as much as possible so they didn't trigger shock or anything.

After the spasms stopped and Kimber could breathe without getting sick, I knelt in front of her so she could see my face as I spoke. "Well, aside from the obvious, how are you feeling? Are you hurting?" I asked. She looked a little better. The swelling in her face had decreased. It would be at least a week before she would resemble her former self though.

"A little better. The pain isn't as bad. I can see and speak a lot better. I'm a little nauseous though," she said in a sleepy but clear voice.

"I'm sure Carlisle has something that might help if you want," I suggested.

She shook her head. "Nah. It'll probably make me drowsy. I've been asleep for the bulk of the last week. I'd like to wake up a little, even if facing reality sucks."

Ness and I spent a few hours watching DVDs that Edward had selected, claiming they shouldn't contain anything that would remind Kimber of what happened. Kimber seemed pretty happy that Ness was with her. I knew it was hard for Ness, though. She was still having a difficult time coming to terms with it all. She'd spent a while talking with her family about it. I could comfort both the girls, but I had no idea how to help them get through the emotional damage.

I knew Ness would be fine in a week or two, but I couldn't imagine how Kimber could ever stand being left alone again. She was a tough, resilient woman. I hoped and prayed her inner strength would be enough to get her through this.

Carlisle came into the makeshift hospital room looking more miserable than usual. He checked her IV and the vitals that were on the monitor and then pulled up a seat beside Kimber's bed.

"We need to talk about the x-rays we took yesterday," he said gravely, sounding as if he were fighting back tears.

"Are you going to be able to fix my leg?" she asked.

"Not right away, but there's something else. Would you like Ness to step out?"

She shook her head and glanced over at a very concerned-looking Ness. They shared a reassuring smile.

Carlisle took a deep breath and continued, "There isn't a delicate way to put this." He paused, his jaw clenched tightly. "Kimber, you're pregnant."

The world froze. _Oh. Fuck._

Becoming a father with my former fuck buddy was _nowhere_ in my plans for the future. I was in love with Ness. We were together and happy, even if it had only been for a brief amount of time at this point. I didn't want anything but her.

But I couldn't possibly abandon my child. Getting rid of it was _not_ an option. I could vaguely hear Kimber stammering apologies and sobs, and something about her IUD before the doc interrupted her.

"This isn't Jacob's child." We both stared at him in shock.

I turned to Kimber. "Is there something I should know? Because last I checked, I was the only person you'd been with for the last year." My voice was a little cold, but if she'd been fucking someone else all this time, I had a right to know.

I wasn't sure if I could actually contract an STD, but I sure as fuck didn't want to find out the hard way. And Kimber and I never used protection, didn't see a need for it since we were both clean, she had an IUD, and we only slept with each other.

Her body sagged against the hospital bed, her gaze shooting straight up to the ceiling, as if she were looking through it to the heavens for guidance.

"We had consensual sex. Twice. In the beginning, when I didn't know…" Kimber trailed off, tears building in her eyes.

"I want you to know your options before you make any decisions."

Kimber nodded and Carlisle continued. "Option one, you abort." The words fell from his mouth as if they tasted disgusting. Kimber's face contorted as though she'd been back-handed. "I'm not certain that it can be done. I would have to get another doctor to perform the operation and it might mean losing the ability to ever have children. Option two, you have the child. You would be pregnant for about two and a half, maybe three more weeks. Your child would be like Ness, half human, half vampire. You would likely have to be turned into one of us after delivery. I will be honest, it's a very difficult pregnancy, but we know what to expect and how to handle things."

Kimber was absolutely frozen, staring at the wall behind Carlisle.

"Dear, I'll give you some time to think. If you have any questions at all, don't hesitate to call for me. Bella is willing to help in any way she can, as well. We all are," Carlisle concluded.

Kimber only nodded. Tears streamed down her face but she wasn't sobbing. After several long, silent minutes, Ness grabbed my hand. Her eyes bored into mine. _I can't stay Jacob. I can't keep myself together. Even if Warren was a monster, that is a baby inside her. My family wanted to kill me. You have no idea how it feels to know that. That baby is like me – part human, beating heart, breathing lungs. It isn't a monster. You have to make her see this. Please, Jacob. She _can't_ kill the baby._

She swatted the tears from her eyes and kissed my cheek before leaving.

I held Kimber's hand and stared blankly at the wall. She was silent and perfectly still. We were both focused on our thoughts. I was one of the people who wanted Ness dead when Bella was pregnant. I wanted to kill her myself. But knowing the amazing creature she'd become, could I think the same way about the child Kimber carried?

Ness wasn't a monster at all. I saw her childhood photos all over the Cullen home. She was without a doubt the most beautiful, angelic looking child I'd ever seen and I was pretty sure I'd think that even if she wasn't my imprint. She had chubby cheeks. Her hair was a little lighter than it was now and hung in ringlets all over the place. Her smile made the pictures bright. She was like a little angel. Could Kimber's child be another little angel? Would it be worth losing her mortality? It wasn't my decision to make.

Ness wanted me to talk to Kimber, but I had no idea how to begin or what to say.

At least an hour had passed since Carlisle and Ness left the room when Kimber let out a quick huff and said, "Can you get Bella?"

She saved me from having to talk to her like Ness had asked. _Thank God._

Of course Bella was standing in the doorway seconds later. I excused myself so they could speak privately.

There was another conversation that needed to be had. Edward knew I was roaming around the house looking for him. He called my name from inside yet another sitting area I had yet to see. He gestured to the sofa across from him. There was a sub sandwich and soda on the table. I was having a hard time eating since it had all happened, plus I couldn't bring myself to in front of Kimber. The poor girl probably wouldn't be able to eat a semi-solid meal for a week at best.

"Thanks, man," I said quietly, avoiding eye contact. I took my seat across from Edward and took a couple of bites before opening up the conversation that I was dreading. I was nervous, which wasn't a common thing for me. "So I guess you know why I'm here?"

He nodded.

_Here goes…_

"I don't want you to hate me. Ness means everything to me now. And I know she's stubborn enough to let our issues become a wedge between you and her. I don't want to be the reason she separates herself from you. Just…" I paused and took a second to swallow my pride. "Give me a chance. I'm good to her. And Ness…she like…makes me whole. Love isn't a good enough word for how I feel about her."

Finally, my eyes met his hard glare. Edward spoke, "I was going to kill you, you know. You were next after Warren. I thought about it on the way to that house. Renesmee would have hated me, but my anger was overruling my better judgment at the time. It wasn't until you showed me all those things in the car that I started to change my mind. I haven't seen her smile like that since she was a kid. So I decided to let you live. I still hated you, but I couldn't kill you.

"The last thirty-six hours have given me the opportunity to see who you really are now. I've seen Renesmee's thoughts about you, how she feels about you, memories you've created together. I've witnessed your loyalty to that poor girl upstairs. The things you've done in the last day have more than proven to me that you are man enough for my daughter. I don't think I could hand-pick a better man if I searched the world over. If you do all those things for a mere friend, I can only imagine the things you would do to protect my daughter…your imprint."

I looked him straight in the eye. "I want to spend my life with her."

I did. If I was certain about anything at all, it was that. Nothing could compare to the way Ness made me feel. It was indescribable. Nothing could be better. Nothing else mattered. As long as I had her, everything would be fine.

He sighed and laughed nervously. "Let's start with baby steps. Get through college, make something of yourself, and then we'll talk."

I would do that. I wanted to give her everything I could and provide her with a life we could both be proud of.

"Kimber and Bella need me. Spend some time with Ness while you can," Edward said as he got off the couch and made his way to the stairs.

"Hey, is she okay with me helping Kim? I mean, she doesn't seem jealous, but I don't want to piss her off."

"She's fine. She worships you. You'd have to do a lot more than help a friend in need to piss her off." The annoyed expression on his face was almost funny. Maybe she really was as into me as I was her.

Ness breezed in as I polished off my sub. She looked happy for a change. It seemed like weeks since I'd seen her beaming smile. Hard to believe it was only yesterday morning. I didn't realize I was even walking until my arms wrapped around her little waist and lifted her against my chest.

"I love your smile," I whispered, nuzzling her ear. I stood her up in front of me so I could see it again. Just as I hoped, it was even wider than before.

"Aren't you going to ask _why_ I'm smiling?"

**AN: **

**The Edward/Jacob conversation may not have gone as you'd expect, but my objective in writing this story was to go against all the customary Jacob/Nessie plotlines…do the opposite of what people have come to expect from the pairing, **_**and**_** make it plausible. Thus far, going by the reviews, I'm doing an okay job of keeping you guys guessing. **

**I've decided to tell my husband about my writing if I reach 500 reviews. So if you like what you're reading, tell me! I want to tell him, but I want to have a sense of accomplishment first, and 500 reviews is definitely a milestone worthy of sharing (well, for the Jake/Ness pairing, at least). **

**A teaser for chapter 18 will be sent to those who review/retweet. **

**Maniacal: Second Chances update has been posted. It's chapter four and corresponds with chapters 16 and 17. **

**Sorry for the crazy long A/N. I tend to ramble sometimes. **


	18. Sisters & Cock Blocks

**Chapter 18 – Sisters and Cock Blocks**

**A/N: **

**SURPRISE! And you thought it'd be Friday before you got an update. It's because my betas, EssatheTwerp21 and DeeDreamer, are so snappy. **

**I know a few (ahem, a lot) of you are ready to see what caused that little scene in my teaser. Here it comes! **

**Oh, and let me remind you that I don't own Twilight. **

**NPOV **

Kimber was keeping her baby.

I had "accidentally" overheard the conversation she'd had with my mother. Now she and both of my parents were going over the events leading up to my birth. Mom couldn't remember everything that happened but Dad's memories of those brutal days were vivid.

I was ecstatic.

I wasn't a fan of girls getting knocked up before marriage, but these circumstances were entirely different from that of the garden variety, irresponsible-decision-making youth. Regardless of the situation, I felt like it was never okay to kill a baby.

Besides, it wasn't like she was going to be left alone to raise it. Nothing official had been said yet, but my family would never leave her out in the cold to raise a half vampire child by herself as a newborn.

Jacob and I sat down and ate together, his second meal in the last hour, my first in a while. It was hard to eat. I had no appetite whatsoever…until now.

Kimber was still pretty beaten up, but she was getting better and better. Her spirit was still broken, but the change would probably help heal a lot of the emotional and psychological damage.

Jacob and I went for a long walk after lunch. He kept a strong arm wrapped around my waist at all times, probably because he was still in protective mode. I didn't mind. I loved it, actually. When I was young – well, young_er_ – I hated how my parents were so protective. But not with Jacob. Things were so easy with him.

We talked a lot about my family, Jacob about how he knew them from where he used to live, how he and my dad fought together, he even admitted to mom being the one from his past he mentioned the night that Warren found out about Jacob and me. That didn't matter much though. I believed the past was the past.

He wanted to know all about my history. Where I'd been, the few things I'd been able to do in my accelerated youth, what I was like as a child. I used my gift to show him the good times, mostly my pre-adolescence since the bulk of the time after that was gloomy.

We spent at least a couple of hours sharing all the things we'd either been hiding or had yet to discuss, all the while cuddled up on a quilt, deep in the woods. Nothing in the world was more comfortable than being curled against his side. I felt like I'd known him all my life, when in fact it had been less than two weeks since we'd met. We both wished he hadn't run the day I was born.

We started back to the house when it began to sprinkle. I overheard everyone answering Kimber's questions as we approached. She probably knew all there was to know by now.

Much to my surprise, she was sitting in the living room. The furniture had been moved around to accommodate her comfort; the sofa perpendicular to the TV and the chaise angled so that she could prop her battered leg on it. A small smile crossed her lips when we entered.

"Hey Ness, can I talk to you…" she paused, looking around the room at my family, "in private?"

The room cleared, everyone went out the way Jacob and I had come. I kissed his cheek and he followed suit. I curled up across from her in an arm chair. She spoke before I had the chance to.

"I need as many friends as I can get right now. Do you really forgive me?" she asked in a low voice.

"Of course. I would have acted the same way. Forget about it," I replied kindly. I wasn't lying to spare her feelings, it was the truth.

"I feel like we should start over. I mean, everything in my life is starting over. I still can't quite wrap my brain around it." Her voice was garbled as tears began to fill her eyes.

I moved my chair closer to her and held her hand. "Shh. Everything is going to be wonderful," I soothed. "Jake and I will always be here for you, and it seems that my family has already accepted you as one of us."

"All but one," she replied, scowling and sniffling.

She didn't have to specify which one she was having trouble with. "Rose will come around. She's probably just worried you'll be hotter than her after the change," I said jokingly, trying to cheer her up. I loved Rosalie, but her ego could get annoying at times. "So…you're giving me my first cousin. That's awesome!"

She looked puzzled.

"If you're going to be a Cullen, you'll probably be my dad's sister…my aunt…therefore the baby would be my cousin. Feel like you're from Alabama yet?"

We both laughed. She winced when her body jostled just a little too much. I was hoping light conversation and laughter would help her recovery. Getting a new family member was a big deal and I was excited. Not just one, but two!

"Hey, now. I've got family in Alabama!" she quipped, and then her smile dropped. "That's the part that hurts the most…losing my family. We aren't that close, but it still upsets me." Fresh tears began to run down her cheeks.

"Well you're stuck with us freaks now," I said, still trying to perk her up a little. It felt forced since on the inside, I wanted to pull her against me and cry together for hours. I couldn't _imagine_ having to abandon my entire family.

She grinned, but it didn't reach her eyes. "You'll love it. My dad wasn't the easiest person to deal with growing up, but you're not his kid. Everything will be easy for you. And as an added bonus, you won't have to wait tables over the summer anymore! You pretty much won the family lottery."

I turned more serious when I realized that humor wasn't going to help a thing. "This will be a good thing. I promise. Your little one will have the best life ever. You'll never have a care in the world." Except thirst, but I left that part out. One of the full vamps would be more fit to explain that little issue if they hadn't already.

Kimber looked around the room as if searching for the right words to say. She bit her lip. "Ness, will you um…be my sister instead? God that sounds so fucking corny out loud." She blushed.

I smiled and squeezed her hand, showing her acceptance and how I'd always wanted a sister growing up. "I'd love to."

Apparently no one had explained my power to her because she looked extremely confused. I chuckled.

"Oh…it's my thing…like how my dad reads minds. I show my thoughts and feelings." I did it again, showing her how she looked just a second ago.

"Man, y'all are a bunch of freaks," she joked. Finally.

"Yeah, and you're stuck with us." Then a thought occurred to me. "Hey, maybe you'll get some sort of awesome power. I always wished my power was flying. Go figure."

"I want psycho radar," Kimber said ominously.

I moved my chair right up to the couch and hugged her as best as I could without hurting her. I kissed her hair. "Welcome to the family…sister."

_Sister_. A word I never in a million lifetimes thought I'd say in reference to myself and another female. It would never be the sisterly bond that two blood siblings share. I mean, two weeks ago I was on the verge of going back to her dorm for a long night of girl-on-girl. But it would be close in many ways. The ways that counted. Then _maybe_…sometimes…if Jacob was okay with it…something a little on the nasty side. Maybe.

Later that night I helped Kimber shower. It hurt me to see all of the gashes and bruises, but it could have been worse. Her leg was the most damaged, it was badly broken in two places. The rest was just flesh wounds. Fortunately she was able to take pretty strong pain medication since nothing could cross through the placenta. Her face was pretty much back to normal with the exception of her lip.

She had no problem being naked around me, although it was by no means sexual. She needed me. I was the one she felt most comfortable with doing this. It felt good playing that role for someone; being there for someone as a sister.

I wondered what Kimber would look like as a vampire. Beautiful, sure; but I wondered what would change. As stupid as it sounded, I wondered what would happen to her breast implants. I was curious like that. The most ridiculous things would puzzle me until I found the answer. _Guess I'll know in a couple of weeks._

We were the same size, so I loaned her some of the clothes I hadn't taken to college until she grew into the maternity clothes Alice had already ordered. She was online shopping not two seconds after Kimber decided to keep the baby. Alice was nuts like that, but I loved her. It didn't make sense to spend all that money on clothes for Kimber because she wouldn't be leaving the house the entire time she was pregnant, not to mention that she'd only be pregnant for about three more weeks, but Alice was a force to be reckoned with.

After Kimber was all washed up and relaxed from the steamy heat of the shower, I helped her get dressed. Under normal circumstances I would think it was entirely inappropriate to wear the tiny Victoria's Secret pajama shorts I picked for her around a bunch of men who were _very_ taken. But they were about the only thing I could find that she would be comfortable in.

She leaned on the counter as I carefully slid them up her legs, keeping the material from touching her healing wounds.

"They're too tight," she grunted. Most of her energy was being used to keep herself vertical.

"What? No way." I ducked my head around to see her belly. _Oh my gosh! A BUMP!_ "Awww! Look at your little booger. He's already poking out a little!" I said excitedly.

"Save it for later. Take these things off and help me sit down before I fall." Her voice was strained from the physical exertion of holding herself up.

_Knock knock. _

"It's me," my mom said. I cracked the door open. Kimber was still pretty much naked. I didn't want her to feel uncomfortable.

"Dad said to bring this for Kimber." She handed me a t-shirt that was long enough to be a dress. _Must be Emmett's_.

She left and I finished getting Kimber dressed. She looked pretty silly in the huge shirt, but at least it fit around the middle.

Carlisle and Jacob helped her get situated on the sofa. It was then that all the females in the house flocked to her side, begging to see the newfound bump. That is, all but one. Rosalie.

She pulled a blanket under her shirt to cover her panties before sliding the shirt up to expose her once-flat belly. It was still small, but unmistakably a baby bump. I didn't bother asking before I lightly ran my hand over it. I had just finished _bathing_ her, she wouldn't mind my touching her like this.

I had never been around a pregnant person before. It seemed to bring out this maternal side of me I never knew I had. My lips turned up into a huge smile as I cooed at her stomach, as ridiculous as it may have seemed. I even put my ear up to her body in hopes of hearing the rapid thrum of a heartbeat. Carlisle said it was too soon for that, though.

Jacob and I spent some time with my family once Kimber was asleep in her new bedroom. Well, _most_ of my family. Rosalie was still sulking somewhere. Mom and Dad sat down on the sofa across from us. Dad had heard all of the questions I thought of throughout the day and was ready to answer them.

"Rose will eventually come around," he began.

"What's her problem anyway? Kimber doesn't need all that drama right now. I figured she would be thrilled to have another baby in the house," I said, sounding slightly insulted.

"You are like blood to her; real family. That was different. Back then, she was worried about how big the family was getting by adding two more people to the group, and now she's faced with the same concern. Only this time, it's a stranger and a child that is the product of a psychotic vampire. Not family."

_Does she have to be so fucking selfish? _"Whatever. How long is she going to be with us?"

"As of right now, Kimber's debating how long she will stay. She hopes to eventually live on her own, but right now she's accepting that it's going to be at least a couple of years before she's able to do that. Carlisle and I both agree that she should stay until the child is finished growing and that she should complete her degree."

Education. That's the first time I had thought about school in days. What day was it anyway? It felt like today alone had been three.

"It's still Monday. Well, Tuesday technically," Dad replied.

_We can't leave. Not yet. _

"You don't have to leave. But I want you back in school by next week. Carlisle contacted your professors and they've emailed him everything they are doing in class this week. Jacob, I expect you to get your assignments as well. The school thinks you both have the swine flu."

I laughed out loud. _The swine flu_. Everyone was so freaked out about the stupid swine flu. It was as if the damn virus was going to be the next Black Plague. Jacob, who'd been quiet up until this point, laughed as well – a rich sound that warmed me from the inside.

"And Kimber's family is going to think she was one of the missing girls I guess?" I asked.

Dad nodded.

"It's better this way. She can't see them after she changes. Never again," Mom spoke softly.

I was trying really hard to be on my best behavior. Jacob wanted to be respectful to my parents and I was trying to do the same, for his sake. It was hard to ignore the fact that his arm was resting behind me on the couch cushion when it should have been around my waist…or that we were side by side when I wanted to be curled against him…cuddling in a bed somewhere…

"I don't think so," Dad said firmly, interrupting my train of thought before I had a chance to take it too far.

"What?" I said, confused and defensive.

"We have plenty of rooms, Renesmee." His eyes were almost scary.

"You can't be fucking serious," I stood from the couch. Jacob grabbed me by the hips and pulled me back beside him.

He whispered; not for privacy, but to try and calm me, "Shh. It's alright. Whatever it is, we'll deal with it." He kissed my head.

I turned so our eyes were connected. "He doesn't want us to sleep in the same bed. But Jake, I need you. I can't be away from you," I whispered back.

It wasn't a good idea to have our faces so close together in front of my parents. We were lost in each other. Just staring like this was the first time we'd ever locked eyes. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I registered that my parents were bickering. I looked at his lips, warm and soft. _Too long since I last touched them with my own_.

Dad cleared his throat loudly and Jacob tore his face away from mine. He straightened himself back up, trying so hard to be a good boy. What a quintessential father-daughter-boyfriend moment.

"Before you dig yourselves a deeper hole, let me say this. The _only_ reason I will allow the two of you to share a bed is because you, Renesmee, have been through a lot in the past forty eight hours. Do not expect this to be common practice in your visits." The overprotective father tone was in full effect.

"We will be good, Dad," I said dejectedly.

"Yes, you will. Because I know Jacob won't cross the line. I expect both of you to wear normal pajamas and they will be kept on regardless of who's hot or cold. I never let…anyone else," _Warren_, "sleep in the bed with you. Imprint or otherwise, I'm not okay with it."

_We're staying at a hotel next time_.

"Renesmee, can you please, for _once_ in your post-pubescent life, _not_ push me?"

"Sorry," I mumbled, but only because I felt Jacob squeeze my hand, his way of silently begging me to stop.

It was ridiculous. In the last week and a half we had shared the same bed five times. Well, that night Kimber and I were given GHB might not count since he was on the floor beside me, not actually _in_ the bed, but still.

"You did WHAT?" he erupted. Never in my life had I heard my father yell so loudly. It was fucking scary. "All deals are off. Jacob, get the fuck out—"

I jumped up. "DAD! It wasn't like that!"

Jacob stood beside me as if to leave but I used all my strength to push him back down.

"You're not leaving! For fuck's sake Dad, just listen to me for a second!" I screamed.

I started thinking it before I could get the words out. The shots. Being in and out of consciousness. Jacob taking care of us. I stopped at the conversation we had once we got back to my room. He didn't need to know the rest.

"Jacob and Embry saved us. You owe both of us a fucking apology. Hell, even a 'thank you' to Jacob if you ask me."

Dad shot daggers at me with his eyes. "Thank you, Jacob, for taking care of Renesmee when she was so intoxicated that she got herself drugged. Now go to bed before I change my mind," he said venomously.

Anger shown through Jacob's forced expression of indifference. He stood and began walking away. I grabbed his hand and pulled him toward my old room.

_Don't do what he says, it just encourages him. _I told Jacob through our connection. I heard Dad growl from the living room. For a second I thought my dad and I were on the mend. Nope. He was still an ass.

I was pissed. Fucking _livid_. Before I even made a conscious decision to do so, I was dragging Jacob out the back door. I took off running, Jacob behind me begging me to stop. I stopped abruptly and stood on my toes, getting as close to Jacob's face as I could.

"You want me to stop?" I said furiously. "Make me."

And I was off again, running at a dead sprint. I heard him rustling for a second then four paws quickly thudded in my direction. He caught up with me more quickly than I thought he would. I still didn't stop. We weren't far enough away yet.

When we reached the perfect spot, I came to a halt. Jacob phased back to human, an amazing thing to have witnessed, and threw his shorts on hurriedly.

"What was that about?" he asked angrily.

"You're not my dad's bitch. Stop following his every command." I stood right in front of him.

"Please don't do this to me, Ness." His voice was slightly softer, but still stern.

I cocked an eyebrow. "So you think I did a bad thing? What do bad girls get, Jacob?" My hungry eyes moved back and forth from his fierce gaze to his tightly pressed lips.

"Punished," he growled. He reached around and slapped my ass hard. It hurt, but in a _very_ good way.

"Punish me," I whispered, my lips grazing his as I spoke.

He kissed me then. Hard. Rough. Then seconds later, my clothes were on the ground and he was fucking me from behind just as angrily, slapping my ass and growling.

"Don't—do that—to me—again," he said violently between poundings, filling me with all of him. He continued to fuck me hard until we came together.

"Don't ever put me in that position." He kissed me roughly again, but then his lips softened. "Please be good for me. We don't have to deal with him all the time."

I only nodded, feeling guilty for putting him in such a hard situation…and for bringing him here. To the place my parents came for…privacy.

We practically just fucked in their bed.

**A/N: **

**Teasers (and tons of gratitude, of course) for reviews and retweets! **


	19. And it all comes crashing down

**Chapter 19 – And it all comes crashing down**

**A/N: Thank you DeeDreamer and EssatheTwerp21 for being such snappy betas! I'm sure my readers appreciate it as well.**

**JPOV**

We left the next day. Things were _way_ too uncomfortable and tense to stay any longer. Ness promised Kimber that we would be back the following weekend, to which Edward said he and Bella would be going out of town.

I was sort of glad that everything had worked out like that. Edward and I were on decent terms, but I didn't like feeling like I was in the middle of his and Ness's issues. This mess started long before I came back into their lives and I wanted to do everything possible to stay the hell out of it.

I didn't want either of them pissed at me, and I definitely wasn't choosing sides. But if I weighed my opinion on logic, Edward won. His requests weren't entirely irrational. Billy _never_ even allowed Paul to spend the night, much less sleep in the same bed as Rachel. And she was almost twenty when they started dating. But I couldn't have Ness pissed at me either…even if she _is_ sexy as _fuck_ when she's pissed.

So now the band aid on the whole situation was to keep Ness and Edward apart.

I thought he was going to kill us both when we woke up late Tuesday morning. Little did I know, the spot Ness chose last night wasn't random. How the hell was I supposed to know? All I could smell was Ness…and _God_ did she smell good.

Edward wasn't the only vamp causing me grief. Rosalie was at the top of my shit-list...surprise, surprise. Kimber wasn't ever my girlfriend or anything even close, but she had been a friend for a while. And now, she needed me. The blonde bitch's attitude was hurting her, like Kim didn't have enough shit to deal with. For that, I wanted to put Rosalie through a world of pain. Nothing and no one was ever good enough for her. If she didn't back off of Kim by the next time we visited, she and I would definitely have words.

Kimber would be a part of the Cullen's lives for a while, longer than she was anticipating. I agreed with Carlisle and Edward. She should stay with them until she finishes her education and the baby is full grown. Not to say that I was thrilled at all about the concept of her becoming a vampire. But what choice did she have? It was either death or change…which was just another form of death.

We got back to campus in the evening. I completely bypassed my room and followed Ness to hers. My excuse to anyone who asked was that all my shit was in her bag, but really I wasn't planning on leaving her side. Maybe ever.

Ella was sprawled out studying when we came in. She dropped everything the moment she saw Ness.

"Oh my GOD! Why didn't you call me? I've been so fucking worried. I thought you were dead! The RA said she contacted your parents and that you were sick, but she said the same thing about Kimber. She's still not back. I think she's dead, Ness!" Ella was freaking the fuck out, everything she said streaming from her mouth in one breath. She was visibly shaking.

From what I'd gathered, Kimber had been allowed to answer the phone when the RA had called as well as when I had. Somehow she'd managed to leave Ness a voicemail – which I found when I was erasing Ness's full inbox for her. I deleted it without mentioning it to anyone. The last thing Ness needed was another reason to blame herself for what went down with Warren.

"Shh. Calm down, hon. I'm here. I'm fine," my girl said soothingly.

It didn't help Ella at all.

"They found bodies. Five of them. I can't even talk about it." Ella buried her head into Ness's shoulder and sobbed. Ness stroked her hair, trying to ease her as best she could.

"I know, I heard about it on the news," Ness replied, choking on her own tears. I knew returning to school wouldn't be easy, and part of me knew that it was too soon.

The police found some of Kimber's blood on one of the other girls, leaving them enough evidence to suspect she was dead as well.

The two girls sobbed together for a moment.

Ella pulled away from Ness's embrace and wiped the tears from her cheeks and eyes. "Your friend, that blonde guy, came by Saturday night. I told him you were out but he left a note."

She handed Ness a piece of paper. We read it together.

_Renesmee, _

_I can't live without you. No one could ever take your place. No one. I love you with everything I am. Please, __please__ come back to me. I've made some mistakes but I can be better. Please. _

_I love you. _

_Warren _

Ella was pretty confused when Ness collapsed against me and sobbed loudly.

"Please get me out of here," she mumbled between heartbreaking cries.

Her pain was back. I knew she wasn't healed that fast. I knew she was just keeping it together for Kim. Or maybe the reality of it all just came down on her. I crammed some clothes into her backpack while she told Ella that she needed to be with me tonight and how she had a big falling out with Warren. Everything I needed was already in the car and clean thanks to whichever vamp washed my clothes.

"Will I see you tomorrow night? At the vigil?" Ella asked. Ness cried harder.

I pulled Ness to me by the waist and she wrapped herself around me. "I'll have her call you, 'kay?" I told Ella as I pulled Ness out of the room, backpack in hand.

"Can I drive?" she asked as we walked out to the dark parking lot. Her face was still sad but I handed her the keys anyway. I couldn't refuse her anything.

Things were quiet in the car. No talking. Not even the radio. The only sound was that of the cars whirring by as she drove down the highway at an unhurried speed. Ness was focused on the road, tears streaming down her face. I wanted to speak, but was worried she might need the calm.

The silence was finally broken once we were several miles from campus. "I love you, but please do not protest where we are going or that I'm paying for it. All of this is my fault. _Everything!_ If it weren't for me, we would be curled up in my bed at my house. Hell, if it weren't for me, there wouldn't be a candlelight vigil tomorrow night to mourn the death of six girls. Girls that should be alive but aren't because of _ME_!"

I tried to grip her hand and interrupt, but she only yelled louder.

"These girls were killed before they ever had a chance to live even half their lives. Parents shouldn't have to bury their kids, Jacob. They'll never graduate. Never get married. Because of me. Because I damaged Warren so badly that he did this. I knew it was cruel. I knew I'd never love him. But I continued to pull him closer. It should have been me that died!"

She jerked the car into a parking lot, but I was too distracted to notice where. She cried hysterically while I held her close, my hands rubbing her back. I wished I could take her pain away.

"Shh. I love you. It's not your fault, I swear," I whispered, trying to console her. She still cried. I kept whispering everything I thought might make her feel better but it didn't seem to help.

I looked at my surroundings finally, still holding her close while her sobs quieted little by little. We were at a hotel; probably the nicest one in Athens. "C'mon babe, let's get a room. Maybe I'll let you buy me dinner," I tried to joke.

She did this sad half laugh, half sniffle thing. "Come on," she said, shoving some sunglasses over her red, swollen eyes even though it was dark out.

She crawled into the bed as soon as we entered the room, throwing her jeans and top in the floor in the process. I got in with her and held her, the only thing I knew to do since I was pretty sure my consolations weren't helping her much. She didn't cry, but the silence was almost as painful. She laid against my chest, her beautiful hair splayed all over me.

Ness fell asleep soon after. I didn't move or otherwise disturb her. I wanted to kiss her goodnight, tell her that I loved her, and tell her that everything would be better in the morning. But it wouldn't be. She seemed peaceful as she slept so I just laid there holding her until I finally fell asleep as well.

The sun was beaming brightly through the wall of windows when I woke up late the next morning, Ness still asleep and right where I left her. I wished I could fall back asleep, I even tried for a little while, but I hadn't eaten in what felt like days and I had to take a serious piss. I gently peeled Ness off of me, taking care not to wake her. She didn't as much as stir or grumble. I took care of business and ordered us a big breakfast from room service. The knock on the door and sounds from the cart didn't disturb her at all.

It was nearly noon. Ness had been asleep since around ten last night. I was going to wait for her to wake before eating, but _damn_ I was hungry and the food smelled awesome. Thankfully she woke up when I pulled the tops off our platters.

She was so beautiful. I watched her stretch and grumble. _Please let her feel better._

I abandoned my meal to go to her side and maybe…hopefully…put a smile on her face. I stroked her hair and kissed her cheeks softly. "Good morning, beautiful."

"Morning." She smiled just a little and kissed my cheek. "What do I smell?"

"A little bit of everything. Bacon, sausage, two kinds of eggs, pancakes, gravy biscuits..."

"Damn, sounds good." She stretched again and got up, walking her sexy, almost naked ass to the food.

"You want me to get you some clothes?" I asked. There was no way I could keep myself from wanting her when she was _so_ close to being nude.

"You don't like what you see?" she asked jokingly, but I could tell it was forced.

I smiled. "Love it. Just trying to take care of you, babe."

She slumped in her chair at the table and dug in. I think she ate almost as much as I did. A little burp escaped when she was done and she blushed. It was so fucking cute.

I had been a good boy, keeping my hands to myself since last night even though she'd been in nothing but a bra and thong – a sexy hot pink set at that – since she got in bed last night. But it was getting extremely difficult. She probably didn't want anything to do with me sexually, though. She slid back in the bed and cocooned her body in the duvet.

That wouldn't do. She should be cuddled against me.

Our bodies wrapped around each other and I held her. She didn't cry, but she clearly wasn't over this. Her legs were entwined with mine in a way that pressed her center against my thigh. I shouldn't have even registered this. I shouldn't have noticed the way her breasts were pressed against my chest, rising and falling with every breath. I closed my eyes and tried to focus on making her whole again. Then she shifted, pressing her body further against me. Despite my efforts, I got hard. And it was pressed right against the inside of her thigh. _Dammit_.

She turned her head up to look at me. Our faces were so close. I wanted so badly to kiss her.

"Jacob," she murmured.

"Yeah, babe?" I asked huskily.

She moved up my body, coming even closer to my face. "Love me," she said, sounding broken, eyes pleading.

Of course I loved her. I was confused so I just kissed her softly. Slowly. Gently. As if her lips would shatter if I weren't careful. Her lips parted and it all made sense. She meant love her like _that_.

My fingers lightly skimmed across her back as we kissed. Our lips and tongues moved together slowly and gently. Her body relaxed significantly. I rolled us so that I was on top of her, using an elbow to keep my massive frame from crushing her. After a few more minutes of kissing her delicious lips, I began placing soft, unhurried kisses as I trailed my lips down her face and neck

I kept the inner wolf calm, focusing exclusively on loving Ness.

I placed slow, open mouth kisses down her neck and chest until I reached her breasts. I brushed my fingers across the sensitive skin there, rolling her taught nipple in my fingers. Ness gasped at my touch. I flicked her peak lightly with my tongue, earning another intake of breath.

My hands and mouth explored her body. I massaged, kissed, licked, and touched every part affectionately, saving the best for last.

Ness moaned loudly when my tongue very lightly glided over her glistening sex. She was _so_ ready. I didn't want to be greedy or too rough, so I kept my pace pretty slow and easy, savoring the taste of her desire. Desire she held for _me_. I slid two fingers inside her body. Her hips bucked and her moans got louder. I quickened my pace on her nub but kept my fingers slow. Her fingers pinched her nipples and her back arched off the bed, a damn sexy sight.

"Jacob…Oh God…yes…don't stop…" she panted.

She came undone a few seconds later, fisting the sheets and moaning sexily. I looked up to meet her eyes. "I need you," she said longingly.

I climbed back up her body and positioned myself at her entrance. Our lips locked as our bodies connected.

I loved her over and over again for what felt like hours. When I was completely spent, I collapsed beside her. Both our bodies were covered in sweat, gasping for breath. She looked so gorgeous lying beside me with her messy hair and flushed cheeks.

Ness fell asleep in my arms – _again_. I wasn't tired, but it felt good to cool off and not move after such a long session of love making. I eventually nodded off for a few hours until I was awakened by my needy stomach. We were preoccupied when lunchtime rolled past so I ordered us some dinner, hoping the smell of food would rouse Ness from her deep sleep.

I went through the same motions I had that morning but nothing I did woke her. Not even the food. I was beginning to worry. I wasn't the slightest bit tired and I had gotten less sleep than she had – which was still a lot. She had slept all last night and the majority of the day.

This wasn't a healthy way to deal with her problems. More than anything on this planet, I wanted to ensure that she wasn't in pain, but she needed to wake up and get through this. The longer she slept, the longer it would be until she healed. I wanted her to wake up so we could work on this together.

Maybe it wasn't the right thing to do, but it felt to me like it would be better than sleeping. I was afraid she would fall into some sort of depression. I couldn't stand idly by and let that happen. She would _not_ become a zombie.

There was only one person who would know what I should do. I rifled through her purse until I found Ness's phone. I quietly slid out the terrace door and called Carlisle.

"Hello, dear, is everything alright?" he asked in a concerned tone.

I cleared my throat. "Hey, it's Jacob actually. She's okay…well, not really. That's why I'm calling." I fidgeted and paced around the small space, unsure of what exactly to say.

"Are things catching up with her?"

I sighed. "Yeah. She's only been awake for maybe three or four hours since this time yesterday."

I heard people talking over one another rapidly in the background. From what I gathered, Bella wanted to talk to Ness, but Carlisle objected.

"You need to talk to her, Jacob. If she won't come home, get her to go somewhere else with you. Away from Athens." He paused. "I knew it was too soon for her to go back to campus," he continued, seemingly to himself.

I peered through the glass doors to see her still out cold. "I'll do what I can."

After getting a few tips on how to get through the next few days, I deleted the call off of her history and went back inside to wake Ness.

I gently stroked her face with my fingertips, down her eyelids, across her cheeks, barely touching her lips.

"Ness, wake up," I whispered. She moved around a little. "I love you. Please wake up."

Her deep brown eyes finally cracked open. "What time is it?" she grumbled as she stretched.

"Almost eight. I got us some dinner."

She smiled. Actually fucking _smiled_. "Good 'cause I'm starving."

Dinner was pretty quiet, but she seemed to be in a better mood. When she finished, she began to make her way back to the bed but I stopped her, grabbing her by the waist and spinning her around to face me.

"We need to go somewhere else," I said gently. I didn't want to look like I was being over-protective or worrisome. "You wanna go down to Atlanta for a couple of days? Maybe do some shopping?"

She thought for a moment. "Only if I can shop for you, too," she said with a smirk.

"Whatever makes you happy."

**A/N: **

**I'd like to point out that I allow anonymous reviews. Flames will be deleted, though (not to mention completely ignored), so save your time :-) **

**Chapter 20 teaser for reviews/retweets. **


	20. When I grow up

**A/N: As always, thank you to my lovely betas, DeeDreamer and EssatheTwerp21. **

**Thanks to those who have listed my story as recs on their profile! That is so awesome of you. **

**And of course, thank **_**you**_** for reading :-). Your enjoyment and encouraging words are cherished. **

**Chapter 20 – When I grow up… **

**NPOV **

We decided at the last minute that Atlanta might not be such a good idea. We needed somewhere new. Somewhere that wouldn't remind us of last weekend's tragic events.

We drove east aimlessly for a while until settling on Myrtle Beach. I didn't know what the shopping would be like but a trip to the beach would be perfect, especially since we would actually be able to go out during the _day_. That line of thinking led to thoughts of why I couldn't go to the beach in California during the day.

I quickly focused on imagining the memories Jacob and I would make on this trip. Memories that would trump any beach visit I ever had with the bastard from hell.

Jacob voiced his concern about my sleeping so much. He thought I was depressed. On some level, I was. More than anything, though, I was exhausted. I explained to him that the stress was probably wearing me out and that my mental state wasn't _that_ bad. Sure, I was pretty down and still very hurt, but I would come out of this alright. My issues paled in comparison to Kimber's.

I just needed time to heal. That's all.

Coming here was the best idea I'd ever had. The oceanfront was pretty and our room was awesome. Naturally, we stayed in a suite at the nicest hotel in the area.

I wasn't allowed much time to enjoy it, though. Jacob kept me out and about all day and night. I guessed he was trying to keep me preoccupied and awake.

The beach was pretty much deserted since it was so damn early in the morning and school was in session. It felt so good to be out in the sun. The sticky ocean breeze seemed to carry away my burdens and sadness. The sound of the waves crashing was soothing. It wasn't the most beautiful place I'd ever been, but it was definitely paradise.

"Here you are, miss," a waiter said, sitting a tall frozen drink on the table beside my poolside lounger.

"I'm sorry, I didn't order this," I said politely.

"The gentleman with you did, ma'am."

Jacob returned holding a huge beer and an even bigger smile on his face. He nodded a silent thank you to the waiter and sat in his lounger beside me. I eyed him curiously but he pretended not to notice.

"Did you know I've never been to a sunny beach?" he said nonchalantly.

I chuckled and waited for him to answer my unspoken question. W_hat's up with the booze?_

"I've never gotten trashed during the day either," he continued.

"Is that our plan? Getting trashed?" I asked sarcastically.

He took a long chug of his beer before replying, "Yup!" a grin permanently plastered across his face.

I shook my head in mock shame. He was so cheerful and adorable. I couldn't say no, so I took a sip of my drink and smiled.

" 'Atta girl," he said playfully.

I smirked. "You realize it's only eleven in the morning, right?"

His shoulders slumped and his head hung down. "You're right. I knew I should've gotten you up earlier. DAMN!" he shouted. It was hilarious. He was really playing the part well.

"We've got catching up to do!" he said eagerly, tilting my glass higher as I sipped.

The waiter saw us finish our first round and came back to see if we wanted another.

"Two more and a couple of Jager Bombs…Wait, make it four. We had a late start," he said, looking at me with this cute grin.

I rolled my eyes and laughed. "You are incorrigible."

The drinks kept coming…and coming…and coming.

I was pretty loaded by noon. It felt awesome to let go and have fun for a change. No worries. No drama. Just having fun with my man.

We were walking on the beach as best as we could in our state. Supernatural agility or not, booze and sand was a tough combination.

"So what's your plan, Jacob? Whaddya wanna be when you grow up?" I slurred.

We admired the scenery as we walked. "Something that pays a lot. You've got expensive taste." He laughed.

"I'm not _that_ bad. I just put my resources to use. And I don't hear _you_ complaining," I joked.

"Whaddabout you?" he asked.

"Shit, I don't know. Something fun and colorful."

We continued rambling about nothing important. Being with him was so easy. Somehow he made me smile even during the worst time of my life.

We walked from the beach to the bar and back for refills countless times, keeping up our buzz… er…yeah, we were far past having just a buzz.

"D'you wanna have kids? I mean…like ever. One day. Not like, now. With me or anything," Jacob stammered.

I was too hammered to keep my thoughts from spewing right out of my mouth. "What, you don't wanna have kids with me?" I said defensively.

He looked around the beach uncomfortably. "I figured it would be a _little_ creepy to ask you if you ever wanted to have kids with _me_. It's been what, two weeks?"

Not two weeks. Twelve days. Most of them the best days of my life.

"Do you not know how in love with you I am? It's insane. I wanna fuckin' marry you and have a _million_ kids. Like those Duggar people. Except our kids would be awesome. Those kids—"

"You wanna _marry me_?" he asked in a tone I couldn't quite place in my drunken state. Surprise? Happiness? Confusion?

I stopped walking and looked at him. He had this sparkle in his eyes that made me want him in so many different ways. It gave me butterflies. Suddenly the moment had turned from playful and fun to serious.

"Yeah, I mean, I know it sounds ridiculous and borderline psycho, but I _love you_. Like, _really_ love you."

He just stared at me, eyes sparkling.

"Say something," I whispered.

"I just…wow…I never thought someone could…love me and want me that much." He stopped talking to place a soft, slow kiss on my lips. "I love you."

I kissed him the same way he just had. "I love you, Jacob."

I felt eyes on us and looked around. Just as I thought, there were a couple of people watching our little exchange. They diverted their attention when they saw me look, but it didn't do them much good.

"C'mon, sexy, buy me a shot," I said playfully.

We began walking hand in hand back to the pool bar.

"So does this mean…we're engaged?"

I laughed. "Not quite. You forgot a couple of things."

He raised a questioning brow.

I held up my left hand and wiggled my fingers. "I'm not superficial, but a ring of some sort is a prerequisite. And if my father's opinion of you matters to you at all, you'll need to ask him first."

Jacob winced. "Well, guess I've got a few decades to save, because it's going to take that long to earn his approval," he half-heartedly joked.

I didn't give a shit what my dad approved of, but unfortunately Jacob did. "Why d' you care about what he thinks?" I slurred.

"Family is forever. Especially when you're part of a family of vampires. I don't want to fuck things up with him. He probably wouldn't give me a second…err…third chance."

"Whatever babe," I sighed. "Buy me a shot."

We spent the remainder of the day in much the same manner as we had that morning – drinking, joking around, and attempting to have serious conversations that were slurred yet blatantly honest.

Jacob was such a fun, energetic person to be around. He radiated happiness and positivity. It was impossible to stay depressed around him. When it was just the two of us, I felt like a different person. Like the person I _wanted_ to be. Not who my parents thought I should be. Not the ridiculous, stubborn, rebellious person I usually was. I was just _me_.

That night, we went to an all-you-can-eat crab buffet. I normally didn't eat much unless I was PMS-ing. Sure, I ate human food, but not much, and I didn't usually enjoy it with such zest. Maybe it was Jacob. Maybe because he's a bottomless pit, constantly eating. Or maybe he just brought out my human side.

As we gorged, Jacob seemed a little…off. His features lacked that carefree ease that they usually held.

"Jacob," I said, trying to pry his attention away from the pile of steaming food between us. It was surprising to see that his huge hands could crack even the smaller crab legs without ripping the meat in two or sending it hurdling through the air.

He didn't respond for a minute, but instead looked around the restaurant nervously. He swallowed hard and didn't meet my eyes when he finally spoke. "I've been thinking…"

When it was obvious he wasn't going to continue, I pressed for more, "About?"

With his eyes locked on the faux wood grain table, he finished, "I want…I want you to meet my family."

_WOW!_ He wanted me to meet his family! We'd talked about doing it one day, but it sounded like he meant in the near future.

"That would be great!" I squeaked. I felt honored to be so important to him that he wanted me to meet his family. Jacob didn't seem to share my enthusiasm, though.

"The only thing is…I can't really afford to get _both_ of us there and back." His eyes flicked up shyly to gauge my reaction. "This is humiliating," he said lowly, looking down to his plate.

"Don't be ridiculous!" I said sweetly, but perhaps with a bit too much insistence. "Do you not understand the limitless amounts of money we have access to? There should be special laws against the things Alice does! Not that it would stop her. Anyway, my family spends _huge_ sums of money all the time. Hell, my purse alone could pay for both our flights."

I tugged my Nancy Gonzalez croc-skin hobo from the seat and rested it gently on the table. Personally, I wouldn't have spent that much on a handbag, but Alice would. She'd given it to me as part of my college wardrobe.

Jacob clearly had no idea the difference between my bag and any other he'd ever seen, so I elaborated. "Three grand worth of gator, here."

His mouth hung agape for a moment before he shook his head. "It's still hard to let my girlfriend pay for something so expensive," he admitted shamefully.

I huffed. "To us, money is nothing. We get it, spend it, and anything that can be donated winds up at Goodwill after a month or two. We don't hoard money, we give it back. And probably use it more wisely than some people would. You can be ashamed of using my family's money when you're not a college student…or when we're married with five kids and can't afford to pay for a flight down to my grandma's island for a weekend away. See what I mean? My grandma has her own _island_."

The look on his face made it clear that I wasn't convincing him.

"Are you always this stubborn?" I asked jokingly.

He just grinned. "When do you want to go to Washington?"

It was my turn to stare at the table. I didn't know how to tell him that I never wanted to go back to campus. Ever. I felt pathetic for making that decision, but at the same time I knew that the only way I would ever be able to get past all of this. How could I ask him to uproot himself after such a short time? Sure, he wanted to be with me forever, but it seemed a little too soon to start dictating his life for him.

I knew what would happen next. It didn't make me any less ashamed of my choices. I knew he would tell me that he supported my decision and would come with me to any other school. He would comfort me and tell me that he understood. It had only been twelve days, but in that time I'd quickly learned that he would do absolutely _anything_ to make me happy.

"Next Monday?" I said meekly. I couldn't even gather enough courage to flat out tell him my intentions.

He slowly nodded and seemed to at least somewhat understand the implication of my response. He took my hand in his from across the table.

"You don't have to go back there," he said protectively, staring into my worried eyes.

It was as though he knew exactly what I was thinking. I didn't respond. I just bit my lip and focused on the tablecloth.

"We can start fresh next semester. I hear University of Alaska is nice. And imagine the hunting there," he said lightly, trying desperately to reanimate me.

I sighed. "I can't do that to you."

He rolled his eyes and huffed. "And I can't have you going back to UGA just to be miserable, either. I don't have any ties to Georgia. Honestly, I'd _rather_ go to UA."

His other hand came up to my chin and gently lifted it so I would meet his gaze.

"You make me want to do the right things; to be a better person. I want to be closer to my family. I abandoned them and my pack and it's time for me to be a man. UA is running distance from home. And Alaska is _beautiful_. Your family could visit…if you wanted them to…and not have to worry about the sun."

Instead of it sounding like he was trying to make me feel better, it was more like he was trying to convince me of something he'd already decided. My face softened and he smiled.

"This will be a good thing. C'mon. You know you'd rather spend the next four months adoring Kimber's baby anyway."

I cracked a grin. "You sure about this? What about Embry?"

He shrugged. "He's a big boy. Besides, he's finished after next fall. I guess Hannah will have to find someone else to get nasty with in hotel hot tubs."

And just like that, I was never returning to UGA.

Making plans to meet his family was scary. I'd never interacted with humans much outside of school, and even then it was minimal.

I barely spoke when I was younger; if I had something to say, I would use my gift. I preferred it, and I think my family did as well. Instead of simply using words, I could vividly show what I was talking about and share raw emotions through my connection. So to say I was socially awkward was an understatement.

I was most nervous about meeting his sister, Rachel. I'd heard stories about how protective she was growing up, how she was the mothering type. His father would likely accept me right away, given the imprint and all, but she might take some convincing. Maybe I was over-thinking things.

After all, I was part of the reason he decided to come home. Had we never met, he would likely still be the way he was before – hollow and alone. Kimber may have filled a portion of the void, but he told me that I'd made him whole again.

Was it feasible that Jacob spent so many years in misery because his imprint was somewhere out there and he didn't know? It was a possibility. I, too, felt empty before he came along. I always felt like something was missing. I thought it was my lack of friends, but it was probably the lack of having Jacob in my life. He said I made him whole, the same could be said for me.

We finished out the night by booking our flights and hotel. I was completely exhausted from such a long day of drinking and being out in the sun so we went to bed as soon as we were done. It had been such an eventful day and I sure felt it. Jacob enveloped me in his warm, boxer-clad body and I was in heaven. Feeling his skin against mine was arousing, but my fatigue ultimately won. I succumbed to sleep with Jacob's thick fingers skimming the sensitive skin on my back.

The phone rang at some God-awful hour of the morning, or so I thought. With my eyes closed, I felt around the nightstand for my phone.

"This better be good," I grumbled.

"You're not even awake yet? God, I thought you guys would be halfway here by now!" Kimber said with disappointment.

I allowed my eyes to crack open just a little bit. The sun was pouring in from the windows. "What time is it?"

"Noon! Now hurry up! I expect to see your beautiful face by three. Oh, and the baby has a surprise for you!" She was way too chipper for someone who was carrying a half vampire baby. She sounded like she'd spent entirely _too_ much time around Alice.

It sure didn't feel like noon, more like seven in the morning.

"Ugh fine. Are my parents there?" I said while stroking Jacob's soft hair, trying to wake him from the dead.

"For now. I think they're leaving tonight…but hey, go easy on them, okay? For me?"

I sighed. "Have you gone over to the dark side?"

"I'm not on any side. But Ness, your dad _wants_ to have a good relationship with you. He's willing to make compromises. He loves you…_aaaand_ now he's standing in front of me giving me the evil eye."

Jacob's hand began roaming around my torso, making it difficult to continue our conversation. "I'll be there by five," I said distractedly, trying to not sound aroused.

"Five? Edward said Myrtle Beach is only a three hour drive from here." Kimber was flat out whining now. _Definitely pregnant_.

Unsure of whether or not my dad was within earshot of the phone, I tried to gain some composure, a difficult task with Jacob's mouth now making its way down my neck. "I gotta pack and…take care of some things."

Jacob took the phone from me. "Kim, stop being a cock block. We'll be there soon," he said, hitting the end button and tossing the phone across the room.

We managed to leave the hotel in an hour, cutting our lovemaking time down to just half an hour. I needed more, though. I always needed more.

Too much of a good thing was never enough.

**A/N: Reviews will be responded to with a teaser of chapter 21. It's is definitely one of my favorites and I **_**so **_**can't wait to post it! It's one of the longest chapters in the story, too. **

**I would also like to point out that my submission to the After Your Heart Stops Beating contest, Two Seconds too Late, won Host's Choice from TwiCharmed! Check out the banner and the story on my profile. **


	21. Approval

**A/N: Sorry for the delay in posting. I was too busy eating and shopping Thursday and Friday, and then the rest of my weekend was spent caring for a teething baby. Fun fun. **

**I don't usually flip POVs mid-chapter, but I did it in this one. **

**This chapter is one of my favorites. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 21 – Approval**

**NPOV **

Jacob's habits behind the wheel were comparable to my family's. We pulled into the driveway at three-thirty: It would have taken the average driver five hours.

Kimber wheeled out the front door to greet us. Her face was back to perfection and she was smiling brightly, cheeks glowing with the flush of pregnancy. Her exposed injuries were healing nicely. The bruises were already turning a caramel color and her stitches were out. Her baby bump had become more like a basketball. It was the cutest thing ever.

"Hey beautiful," I greeted Kimber, leaning over her wheelchair to hug her gently.

"It's about time you two got here. I've got so much to talk to you about." Kimber's hair was flawless, she had on make up, and she was wearing one of the new maternity outfits Alice had purchased Monday.

"Alice, have you been playing life-size Barbie with Kimber?" I asked when she greeted me at the door.

"_She_ likes it," Alice retorted.

"I did, too…the first_ seven hundred times_," I said sarcastically.

My demeanor did a one-eighty when I saw my father walking toward the foyer. I gathered that he wanted to talk to me about the tension between us, and I had my own matters to discuss with him.

"Please, just for the weekend, try…for me," Jacob whispered.

I stopped myself from rolling my eyes.

"Welcome home, Renesmee," Dad said cordially.

"Thank you, Father," I said with strained geniality.

It would have been nice to mingle with my family for a while before getting to the tough part – talking to my dad – but I didn't want him seeing anything in our thoughts before I had the chance to defend myself. Mom, Dad, Jacob, and I went straight to my parent's balcony. It wasn't private in the sense that no one could hear us, but it was as far as we could get without leaving. As an added bonus, the serene atmosphere would lend to civility.

"I'll let you go first," Dad told me.

There was no beating around the bush with him. "I'm transferring to University of Alaska starting in January. I'm not returning to UGA. Not even for my things."

I didn't get the usual 'Angry Dad' look. Jacob must have been feeding him further details. "Are you sure this is the best way to deal with this? Run away from it?" he said softly.

"Maybe not, but I can't go back there."

"Very well. Now it's my turn. I'm willing to compromise with you on some things. But this is where I draw the line. We've set up a room for you two. There are two beds. You may sleep in the same room, but not the same bed. Renesmee, I'm begging you, please don't push me on this. So long as you aren't married, you cannot sleep in the same bed in this house. Your grandparents agree with me on this. There are only certain things I can control, and what happens in this house is one of them. What you do elsewhere is your business and it's clear that I cannot stop you. Do you accept my offer?"

Jacob squeezed my knee and I caved. "Fine."

This wasn't permanent. We would be heading for Washington in a few days and would be free to do whatever we wanted in our hotel room.

"What?" Dad asked, shocked.

"What?" I replied, unsure of what or who he was referring to.

"You're going to…to Washington?" Dad's face became void of all emotion, frozen solid as a marble statue.

Jacob spoke up. "Monday. We're going to see my family. I haven't been home in a long time and I'd really like for my father to meet Ness," he said, smiling at me.

Mom looked panicked, which made no sense at all. Why were they so freaked out about my going to Washington with Jacob?

Dad rolled his eyes and let out a single chuckle. "Jacob, you and I have a lot to talk about. Come on," he said, jumping off the balcony and landing three stories below with ease.

"I'll be back." Jacob kissed my cheek and followed suit.

**JPOV**

We were a good five miles away from the house before he laid into me.

"You can't take her to La Push! Are you insane?" he roared.

"Why?" I asked defensively.

"The wolves, for starters. How do you think they are going to respond to a half vampire coming onto their land?"

"They won't harm her. She's my imprint and I'm the Alpha." _Technically_.

He scoffed. "When was the last time you took responsibility as Alpha, Jacob?"

"Sam stopped phasing two years ago. I was in charge until I started school."

I'd been trying to keep my thoughts focused on the weather, the birds chirping in the trees, anything except my time as Alpha. And I failed.

"And being the _wonderful_ Alpha you were for that year, how do you think they'll respond to you coming home with her? They don't have to follow your orders, Jacob. From what I've seen in your thoughts, it looks like Paul has done a fine job in your absence."

I wanted to tell him to fuck off, fight him, _something_…but I wouldn't. Not when I had my own concerns to discuss with him.

"They _won't_ hurt her. I'll call and explain everything beforehand. If anyone has a problem with it – which they won't – we'll just stay in Forks and have my family visit us there."

"Renesmee _cannot_, under _any_ circumstances go to Forks," he said seriously.

"Why?" I asked again, annoyed.

"Charlie."

I crinkled my eyebrows. "I don't understand. Now that you bring it to my attention, shouldn't we visit him rather than avoid him?"

"No! He knows nothing of Renesmee. We…when Bella finished changing, we immediately moved to Canada. As far as he knows, Bella died nearly seven years ago. Renesmee is the perfect cross of Bella and me. He can't see her. Furthermore, Bella looks too much like Charlie. Renesmee would notice and somehow put the pieces together." Edward's face was severe.

"I can't believe what I'm hearing. _Why_? Why would you do that to Charlie?"

"Do you have a better idea? His daughter is a _vampire_."

I shook my head, disgusted by what I was hearing. "Renesmee has family she doesn't know about. Don't you think you're cheating her by keeping her away from her human side, her human _family_?"

"To what purpose? So we can expose ourselves? Drag the Volturi into our lives? So she can know what it feels like to lose a loved one in twenty years? We did it to protect her," he said, stepping closer to my face aggressively.

"Then so be it. If we have to, we will stay in Hoquiam or Port Angeles. But I'm sure staying in La Push won't be a problem. And I'll tell Billy to pretend he's sick so Charlie won't come by." I was trying to appease him, even if my beliefs differed from his.

"Now tell me about this Alaska deal." He stepped out of my face.

I took a deep breath – possibly my last – and tried to calm the butterflies in my stomach. "I want…I want to move to Alaska with Ness…" _Say it. Say it. Say it._ "As my wife."

Just the words sent my heart soaring. I knew she would say yes. I wanted to live together off campus, just me and her. She was all I'd ever need in life. I wanted to marry her, to solidify what we already had.

"Have you lost your mind? You two barely know each other," he seethed.

My eyes tightened. "I know her better than anyone else." _Including you_.

"Really?"

I started with the inconsequential things, "Her birthday is September tenth. Her favorite color is lavender. She's a fucking genius. When she's in bright light, there's a burst of hazel around her pupil. She talks in her sleep. A lot. She's the most stubborn, caring, loving person I've ever met. And by some miracle, she decided to let _me_ into her life."

I took a step closer to him. "She said I was the first and only person she's ever felt truly connected to; the only one she feels herself around. You know what she dreams about? Being a mother. And not to pale, sparkly babies either. They're dark skinned with dark hair. Two boys, one girl. Always. Lately it's been almost every time she sleeps."

Edward wasn't interrupting, so I kept going. "Yesterday she _told_ me she wanted to marry me. She likes to put on a hard-ass act, but on the inside she's sensitive. She needs space and freedom but protection and guidance at the same time. _My_ Ness is completely happy. She would never run away from _me_." _Like she did you and Bella._ "Never."

Edward stood there speechless, a hard glare plastered to his face.

"I'm not asking for your approval because I _have_ to. I'm asking because I _want_ your approval. And I believe that deep down, Ness wants it, too."

"What can you provide her? Can you even buy her a suitable ring?"

Was he trying to insult me?

"I'll work while I go to school in Alaska. And I already have a ring; my mother's. It isn't huge or expensive but you should know Ness well enough to know that wouldn't matter." It was getting difficult to keep my tone even. He doubted my ability to take care of her – the one thing I was put on this earth to do.

"You are in no position to be her provider."

Now he was _definitely_ trying to piss me off.

My entire face turned sour. "Money isn't what makes her happy, Edward. Do you not realize that? She uses it because it's there, but not once has she demonstrated that she _needed_ money in order to be happy or to feel good about herself. We are talking about the same person, right?"

He softened a bit. "And what about her family? She's just a few hours away in Athens. You're going to move her thousands of miles from us?"

I rolled my eyes. "Are you really resorting to Jewish-Mother-guilt? Don't pretend that you guys can't afford to fly out whenever and as often as you want. Hell, you could probably _move_ to Juneau."

He nodded slowly. "That's not a bad idea. It's about time for us to move. And Alaska would be a much better place to break in Kimber once she's changed."

_Oh shit. What have I done? _Ness would _not_ be happy about this.

"Calm down. If we move, it will be somewhere an acceptable distance from you two and the university. But I have a feeling that Renesmee will want to be close to her new sister." The anger in his voice was gone now. _Good_. Now I could get back to my original question.

"So does this mean you approve of Ness and I getting married?" I hedged.

Edward's shoulders slumped slightly. "Does it have to be soon?"

"It's up to Ness. I want her to know that the option is there and I'm ready when she is, whether it's next week or after we graduate." _Knowing my Ness, she won't wait that long_. "Would you rather approve of us shacking up while in college, or living together as man and wife?"

At last, his resolve was broken. I knew how traditional and conservative he was about things like that.

"While I still think you two should wait, you…have my approval," he said in a sad, defeated tone.

Relief washed over me. I would wait as long as Ness wanted to, but I knew she would want to get married sooner rather than later. There was no denying our connection. Two weeks or two years, neither of us could be more certain about the other than we already were. We didn't need time to be sure we were making the right choice, and Ness was the type to make a decision and act on it.

Edward and I headed back to the house in silence. It wasn't uncomfortable, though. My mind was busy planning a proposal. I had a few different ideas. It couldn't be cheesy or cliché. I wanted it to be special and unique, something completely unexpected. The proposal in itself would be a huge surprise, but that wasn't enough.

Edward knocked me over just as my thoughts were starting to turn to things he didn't want to see, ways in which I could propose that we definitely wouldn't be able to share with our grandchildren.

_Sorry_.

When we got back I phased at the edge of the woods, put my clothes back on, and began looking for my imprint in the huge house. Her sweet voice led me up two flights of stairs to a room I'd yet to see – Kimber's bedroom.

Alice looked at me bitterly. "What did you do?" she asked.

"I'm not sure what you mean," I lied. By now, her precious visions had either completely changed or disappeared altogether.

She squinted her eyes at me. "I'll be back, ladies. I need to see Edward."

I took her spot on the bed and pulled Ness in my lap, placing a little kiss on her cheek.

"Miss me?" she asked flirtatiously.

"Of course."

I filled her in on a couple of the things her father and I discussed, leaving out the part about them moving and my proposing. She and Kimber were clicking through some baby crap online. I was pretty sure the only part she heard me say was that everything was settled.

She was engrossed in the article she was reading aloud, something about the best colors to use in a nursery. I was a teensy bit put off that she was practically ignoring me, but I had spent almost a full week alone with her. I decided to leave the two girls with their baby chatter but wasn't sure what else to do. I could have stayed with them, but Ness hardly registered that I was in the room. And I felt like I should socialize with everyone else, especially if I was going to be around them as much as Edward thought I would be.

He appeared at the bottom of the stairs as I was coming down. "C'mon. Let's play a game," he said sinisterly.

Being a mind reader, he could beat anyone at any game, so I wondered what the hell he meant.

He led me out the back door and across the back yard to where Jasper and Emmett were standing beside a long table. On it was every type of firearm you could think of. Everything from your garden variety handgun to military issue assault rifles.

What the hell did _vampires_ need with _guns_?

I stopped dead in my tracks and swallowed hard. "What's this?"

Emmett laughed. "We're not killing your ass today, so relax."

"We found something Edward can't use his power to beat us at," Jasper said, giving Edward an arrogant smirk.

"Where's the target?" I asked.

"Pull!" Emmett shouted.

Twenty or so clay discs shot into the air about five hundred yards down the expansive lawn. I hadn't noticed the blonde demon standing down there until then.

At vampire speed, Emmett grabbed a rifle, loaded it, and popped off all but one of the discs in less than twenty seconds. Jasper checked the stopwatch in his hand and wrote Emmett's time down on a chart on the table.

"Getting better," Jasper said encouragingly.

Edward stepped forward and followed the same procedure Emmett had, except he missed two and used a handgun.

"Your turn," he said, gesturing to the table.

The only time I'd ever shot a gun was my dad's .22 when I was a kid, and all we did then was pop soda cans off a log less than fifteen feet away. I didn't even know how to load one, but it didn't look that difficult.

"Pull," Edward said, and my seemingly microscopic discs were in the air.

I managed to hit five of them, which I thought was pretty good considering my lack of experience.

The bitch came up to take her turn.

"Behave, Rose," Edward mumbled.

I backed away from her, hoping it would keep her from taking advantage of the situation.

It didn't work. In a blur, I saw her spin around with one of the larger handguns in her grasp. I immediately moved to the left as she fired.

Scorching pain ran through me. I'd sustained some serious injuries in my time, but this hurt more than any of the others. Edward was examining my leg seconds later. I was biting the shit out of my lip to keep from screaming.

"God damn it, Rosalie! I told you not to do this!" he boomed.

"That's pretty messed up, babe," Emmett mumbled in a small voice.

I'd tried to be extra nice to all of them, even her – on the surface at least – but this was way over the line.

"What the _fuck,_ you stupid bitch? I haven't done a damn thing to you! Why the fuck did you _shoot_ me?" I yelled, not caring at all what Emmett or anyone else might have thought.

She fucking smiled. "Oh come on, you'll heal. And Edward, don't act like you didn't want to do it yourself."

"Looks like the bullet went straight through," Edward said to me, sounding legitimately concerned. His voice turned sour when he acknowledged Rosalie. "He's not my favorite person at the moment, but I would never do this to my daughter."

Ness came running from the house to my side. "Baby, are you okay? What happened?" she questioned shakily, noticing my blood-soaked shorts.

I finally sat down, using Edward's marble arm to ease myself to the ground. "Your aunt fucking shot me. But don't worry about me. I'll be completely healed in a day or two."

I don't think Ness heard anything past where I told her that Rosalie had shot me, because in that same moment she froze and turned bright red. I'd seen Ness pissed before, but not like this. The look in her eyes was scary, nothing but raw fury.

Ness screeched and charged at Rosalie. "I'll fucking kill you!" she screamed. The sight made me proud. My girl was defending me when I couldn't defend myself. Because even if I hadn't been in total agony, there was no way Emmett would let me plow his bitch to the ground like Ness had.

Rosalie was pinned beneath Ness. No one stepped forward to pull her off. Edward and Jasper stood slightly in front of Emmett, just in case he got the urge to step in.

"Why are you such a bitch? Kimber and Jacob haven't done _anything_ to you!" she continued screaming as she pounded her fists onto Rosalie's face. I didn't think Ness was strong enough to actually hurt her, but screeches pierced through the air with each blow.

Ness's small hands wrapped around the demon's neck. "Apologize or I'll pop your fucking head off!"

"I'm sorry!" she said in a garbled voice.

Ness looked to her father. "Does she mean it?"

He nodded. "I think so."

Ness released Rosalie and came back to my side, examining the wounds. Without averting her attention from my leg, she spoke, "Look, Rose, I'm sick of this shit. I don't know what Jacob did to you seven years ago, but you need to get over it. And Kimber has done nothing but try to be your friend. She's part of this family now, so fucking deal with it," she said venomously.

Rosalie darted toward the woods, Emmett on her tail. Maybe this would teach her a lesson.

"Good job, babe," I said gratefully.

She pushed my hair behind my ears. "Are you okay? Does it still hurt?"

I didn't want to look like a pussy, so I lied. "Not too bad. I'll be alright."

She looked behind her to her father who must have shook his head, revealing the truth.

"You don't have to be a hard-ass _all_ the time. It's okay to hurt."

Her palm pressed against my cheek and I leaned into her warm touch, closing my eyes. I saw myself on the sofa in her room, and then she walked in holding a tray of food, wearing a _sexy_ ass nurse outfit.

"You're killing me, Renesmee," Edward groaned.

"Fine, no nurse outfit," she pouted.

I was grateful and surprised when she didn't try to fight him on it.

"Let's get you bandaged up," Edward said, offering to help me up with an extended arm.

I tried to get up on my own but fell back on my ass. It hurt like hell. I allowed Edward to assist, feeling defeated and weak. I used him as a crutch and hobbled into the house. He didn't protest when I opted to hold the handrail on the way up the stairs. He could have easily carried me the whole way, and it would have saved me a lot of agony, but I wanted to retain _some_ of my dignity.

Ness helped Edward clean the entrance and exit wounds since Carlisle was at work. They brought me to Ness's room – which now had two queen size beds instead of the single king.

"I got it from here, Dad," she said nicely, but her posture was strange. Maybe because this was the first time she and Edward had been truly kind to one another in who knew how long.

Edward grinned and hugged her. "No problem. Please be good," he said before disappearing from the room.

Ness handed me the remote and walked into her closet. "There's some good movies on pay-per-view, pick one."

I began flipping through the guide. "What's a girl doing with such a badass TV in her room anyway?" I asked. _TV_ wasn't even a fitting term. The thing was a _monster_ the size of a projection screen you'd see hanging at a sports bar, except it was plasma with insane picture quality.

"I went through a phase where I was obsessed with Virtual Reality games," she replied from the closet.

I ended the conversation at that. VR was probably a lot more fun than her real life had been.

She came back to the sofa wearing tiny shorts and one of those tank tops that had a bra built in, her large breasts spilling out. _This could be very bad_.

"I'm feeling better already," I said with a sly grin.

"Well, it's no naughty nurse outfit, but it'll do I guess."

I pulled her beside me, wishing she were in my lap instead. I could tolerate the physical pain it might cause my leg…but it would definitely make keeping my hands off of her difficult.

"We can hang out and watch this movie until the smoke settles, but I want you to spend some time with your family," I told her. We didn't come here to stay cooped up in her room all weekend.

Once the house heard which movie we were watching – a new Rob Zombie horror flick – they all filed in. Esme dragged another sofa into the room for Kimber. Emmett and Rosalie eventually returned but didn't join us.

Ness ended up sitting on the other sofa with Kimber, massaging her swollen feet. Those two were definitely going to be close. Ness needed a girlfriend she could be completely honest with, someone who could know _all_ of her secrets. She had found that in Kimber.

Though I never committed myself to her, I still considered her a good friend. She wasn't the dramatic, conniving, selfish type of girl. Ness was the absolute most important thing in my life, so my approval of her and Kimber's friendship meant a lot to her. I told her that Kimber was worthy of her, that I trusted her with that piece of her heart.

The two girls barely paid attention to the movie. Instead, they were carrying on a conversation only Edward could understand. Ness was only using her gift and Kimber was answering with one and two word replies. I smiled privately at the exchange. It satisfied me that both of them were happy. If Ness wanted me to know whatever it was they were talking about, she'd tell me.

Once the movie was over, those who slept hit the sack. It seemed harder to sleep with Ness in the bed next to mine than it would be if I were in a different room. I could hear her mumbling but couldn't watch her dreams. I could smell her but couldn't feel her body against mine. She had her blanket bunched up, her legs and arms wrapped around it the way they should have been wrapped around me. The tiny shorts and tank top did little to conceal her body. As if her smooth, exposed thighs weren't torture enough, she shifted, revealing her stiffened nipples under the snug white shirt.

_Fuck_.

I couldn't stay like this – here watching her, wanting but unable to have. I couldn't even fantasize about her while taking care of myself. When I finally dozed off, my dreams were much worse than my thoughts. I couldn't recall exactly what it was about, but a snippet of a _very_ naughty Nurse Ness lingered in my mind when the slam of a door woke me.

"_Please_ shield me," I heard Edward roar…whatever that meant.

I knew I was a dead man when I woke the next morning. The warm skin and smell of Heaven was much too intense and real to be a dream. The second I realized Ness was curled against me in my bed, I moved to jump up, completely forgetting that my thigh still hurt like hell and that I couldn't bear weight on it.

I fell flat on my ass. Ness jerked up looking scared as hell. She had her index finger pressed against her lips insistently, begging me to keep quiet.

I used my upper body to climb back onto the bed. I looked at her bed then back to her questioningly.

_My mom is keeping him from hearing our thoughts_. With a hand on my arm, she replayed the door slam and Edward asking to be shielded.

The door flew open then. "Is everything okay?" Bella asked. Her mouth gaped when her eyes landed on us sitting together in bed. She eyed Ness.

"Jacob fell out of the bed," she said nervously.

Bella raised a suspicious brow. "Come on downstairs. We have some things to discuss after lunch."

_Lunch?_ I looked at the clock. Damn, it was already twelve thirty.

Ness slid out of my bed and stood in front of me as I was about to get up. She pulled my head against her belly, running her nails over my scalp. Was she _trying_ to test my willpower? I smacked her ass.

"Behave or I'll put you on restriction," I said sternly.

"Restriction?"

I looked down at my crotch and back up to her. She laughed. "Pah-lease. As if you could actually follow through."

I carefully got up, standing on my good leg, towering over her. "Care to test me?"

She play-pouted. "I'll be a good girl…as long as there's a reward."

I kissed her chastely on those full pink lips of hers. "Monday. Two days."

It would be tough, but we could go two more days without sex. We'd gone longer than that before. _Two whole days_ longer. Controlling my boner would be a challenge, but at least Bella had some weird ability to keep Edward out of my head.

Ness, Kimber, and I ate a huge lunch courtesy of Bella. Watching Kimber sip from her cup of blood was pretty disgusting, but it didn't completely ruin my appetite. I knew Ness drank animal blood – something I'd yet to witness firsthand – but it still caught me off guard when she took a sip from Kimber's cup.

Thankfully she didn't see my nose crinkle. That would take some getting used to. I had eaten raw animal flesh before, especially when I was running, so the concept wasn't completely foreign to me. But I liked to pretend Ness was some other form of supernatural; something that didn't enjoy the flavor of human blood.

I accepted it, though. In all honesty, she could probably live by killing humans and I'd still love her the same.

Everyone filed into the formal dining room once we finished eating. The three of us sat at the opposite end of the table from Rosalie. Her head was hanging down, eyes focused on the wood of the table. I hoped that bitch felt remorseful for what she did. I still couldn't walk on my right leg unsupported.

Carlisle entered last, standing at the head of the table and meeting each person's gaze with a smile. "As you all know, Renesmee is transferring to Alaska in January. All in favor of going with her raise your hand."

Rosalie's hand was the last to go up, but it did…along with everyone else's. It was unanimous. Kimber was bouncing in her seat with excitement.

"Very well. Esme, Kimber, and I will be leaving Monday. We'll be staying at our old house in Douglas for a little while until we find something permanent. Cars, anything worth more than ten thousand dollars, and personal effects will be moved; but everything else can stay. Including the guns," he said with a pointed glance to Rosalie. "Any questions?"

"Are you sure Kimber can handle such a long trip?" Alice asked.

"Bella flew in from Brazil when she was approximately two weeks into her pregnancy. Things didn't get…complicated…until the last week or so before delivery. It will be close, but we should have everything squared away by then."

Kimber spoke up next. "I want to apologize for being the reason this move has to be rushed. I appreciate everything you all are doing for me and the baby," she said, rubbing her enlarged belly.

"Don't be silly. It's not like this is the first time we've uprooted unexpectedly. Most everyone in front of you has been cause for such actions over the course of our time together. It's part of what we are," Esme said sweetly.

"Yeah, home is where the _heart_ is, right?" Emmett chipped in, earning snickers from all but Carlisle and Esme.

"Where are you guys going Monday? My vision is crystal clear for a change," Alice asked Ness and me.

"I'm going to meet Jacob's family in Washington!" Ness replied excitedly.

Everyone who didn't already know of our plans was stunned for a moment. An uncomfortable silence fell over the room.

"What the hell is the deal with me going to Washington? You guys are acting weird." Ness stood from her seat, eyeing her family suspiciously. They all looked at Edward.

He shook his head. "Meeting Jacob's family is a big step in your relationship, that's all."

"Yeah, sure. Whatever," she said in disbelief.

"Alright, boxes are in the basement. Start packing," Carlisle concluded.

Suddenly it felt all too real. It wasn't just an idea anymore. Ness and I – and her entire family – were moving to Alaska…and I was going to…_propose_.

**A/N: **

**Reviews will be replied to with a chapter 22 teaser. **

**Hope you enjoyed reading this one as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

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	22. Firsts

**A/N: Merry Christmas! I'm absolutely N-O-T abandoning my precious story. **_**Ever**_**. I'm truly sorry for the delay in posting. I feel like I owe you – my very kind, loyal readers and reviewers – a bit of an explanation for my absence. **

**I'll be honest. My kids weren't sick (well, one was for a while, but that's not the reason). I wasn't out of town. No. It wasn't anything like that. All of my free computer time has been spent price-comparing Christmas gifts online, looking at sales ads, digging around on fatwallet dot com, and online shopping. And of course there's the brick and mortar shopping…**

**Every year, from Black Friday until about a week after Christmas, my whole world evolves around bargain hunting. I love it. It's an obsession. **

**Now on to what you're really here for…finally. **

**Chapter 22 – Firsts**

**NPOV**

"Please, for the sake of keeping the peace, just do what she says," I begged.

Jacob rolled his eyes. "There is nothing wrong with the clothes I wear," he grumbled.

Alice folded her arms. "If you're going to be seen in public with anyone in this family – Renesmee included – you need to be dressed appropriately."

Jacob raised his arms and did a quick check of his body. "What's wrong with what I'm wearing?"

Alice appraised his basketball shorts and UGA t-shirt with a cocked eyebrow. "Really?"

I stepped between them and gazed at him sweetly. "Honey, just take the gift card. We'll stop in Seattle before heading to La Push. It's not even that much. Please?"

His eyes bulged. "Not that much? Ness, baby, did you _see_ it?"

I nodded. In my family, five grand wasn't that much for a trip to Saks.

"Can we talk?" he asked seriously.

We took my car to an ice cream shop down the road and shared a huge brownie sundae at one of the picnic tables outside. Jacob was clearly bothered by something more than Alice shoving five grand at him. I had a feeling I knew what it was, but I hoped I was wrong.

"I know we sort of talked about this before, but I'm still somewhat bothered by it," he said, focusing on the sweet decadence between us.

There was nothing more I could say to help him understand that money wasn't of significance to my family, so I just waited for him to continue.

"I can't take handouts from your family. I _like_ my clothes and I _like_ my piece of shit car. I don't need a new wardrobe or a new car or anything else. I can take care of myself and I _want_ to take care of _you_. When we get to Alaska, I'm getting a job. I can't handle you or your family giving me a free ride. It makes me feel bad…that I can't give you all the things they can," he said apprehensively.

I rested my hand on top of his on the table. "I don't need material things, Jacob. All I need is you. But I don't want you juggling work and school. What will you do if your grades drop and you lose your scholarships? Jacob, _you_ are a _part_ of my family now. Letting them help doesn't make you a loser."

He tensed. "I only feel like a loser when I'm made to think that everything I am isn't good enough or up to Cullen standards," he said angrily.

"You're a _college student_. By all definitions, you're supposed to be broke and depending on family to feed, clothe, and house you. So fucking what if it's _my_ family and not yours who are footing the bill. Don't use the gift card. Fine. I'll spend it on Kimber's baby. But you aren't going to make me feel like a spoiled brat for using my resources!"

"I never said you were a spoiled brat!" he said, standing up from the table.

"May as well have. I don't _need_ luxury, but I do _need_ a man who's going to go to school and do well so he can _one day_ provide for our family. Stop being so fucking stubborn and accept that until we're done with school and have jobs of our own, we're going to have help from my family."

He was speechless. His cheeks were red and his eyes were squinted tight. He slammed his fist on the table and took off walking.

Childishly, I watched him walk away without a word. I wouldn't call for him. I knew he'd come back to me. Surely he wouldn't just leave me sitting there.

Standing my ground, I tried to keep my attention on shoveling a bite of sundae into my mouth. When I looked up, my boiling vehemence froze over, leaving me feeling cold and alone. He hadn't turned around. He was approaching the woods on the far end of the parking lot.

"Jacob! Don't go!" I called desperately, tears forming in my eyes.

"Go home, Ness," he said angrily.

I ran after him. He stopped abruptly and turned to face me.

"Go. Home," he growled through clenched teeth, heading back towards the woods.

Tears streamed down my face. Jacob was _so_ mad at me. It hurt to the bone and I didn't fully understand what had just happened…how we ended up angry and yelling. Despite how much I was hurting, I still felt like I was right.

I ran back to my car and sped home, still bawling when I pulled in the driveway.

Dad and Mom were at my car door before I had a chance to open it. "Honey, what's wrong? Renesmee! Are you hurt?" Mom shouted frantically.

"W—w—we had our first f—f—fiiiight," I replied through sobs. Dad's face turned angry. "Stop it! It's not his fault!" _Was it?_

"Honey, come inside and calm down," Mom whispered soothingly.

I continued to cry all the way up to my room. "Do you want to tell me what happened?" she asked once the door was closed.

"J—Jacob…he…he doesn't want…" my tears choked off my words.

Dad stepped in. "He feels like he's not good enough for her. And the money; he doesn't feel comfortable taking it from us or letting us help him."

"He…he told me to go home. He's out there somewhere roaming around…mad at me," I wept.

"Where?" Mom asked, looking to my father for an answer.

"Not far, I can hear him. It looks like he's somewhere in the woods behind the house."

She kissed my head and stepped away. "I'll go talk to him."

As I watched her leap from the open window, anger set in. Not at Jacob, but at my mother. She thought she could talk some sense into him when I couldn't. What the hell did she know about Jacob? He belonged to _me_. I should be the one to help him see reason. Until two weeks ago, she had completely written him off as a distant, fuzzy memory from a past life. And now she thought she could step in and do _my_ job?

It stirred an emotion inside me I'd never felt before. I couldn't find a name for this new feeling.

"Jealousy," Dad said flatly, sitting in front of me on the bed. "Bella has been in this situation before. She wasn't _born_ a Cullen. She felt the same way about our lifestyle. It took her years to feel comfortable accepting it, long after we were married."

"So what should I do?" I asked, peering up through wet lashes to look him in the eye.

"Let him get a job and be a man. All he wants to do is take care of you. We still plan on helping pay rent and _hopefully_ he'll allow us to buy him reliable transportation once we get to Alaska. Everything will be fine, sweetie. You'll have us close if you ever need anything."

_He's all I will ever need. Money or not. _"I don't know what to say to him."

"There's nothing you can say that you haven't said already. It'll take time. His ego is bruised. But once you guys get settled in Alaska and he finds a job, things will be much easier. The best thing you for you to do is show him how little money matters to you if that's how you really feel. Go camping instead of staying in posh hotels. Skip the all-you-can-eat crab legs and cook for each other. And _don't_ drag him shopping with you.

Why didn't I think of that? For the last two weeks I had done nothing but spend relentlessly. Growing up with not much more than necessities, it was natural for him to feel inadequate…and possibly even insecure.

"Does this mean I should get a job and buy my own clothes and stuff?"

"Absolutely not. Jacob can be obstinate if he so chooses, but you will be focusing on your grades until you graduate, not on a job."

_Grades…and Jacob_.

Dad rolled his eyes. "Promise me something?" he asked timidly.

"Maybe," I replied lightly. I wouldn't make him a promise I couldn't keep.

"Regardless of any…changes that may happen or how involved you and Jacob become, can you promise you'll wait to," he paused and closed his eyes, breathing deeply for a moment, "have children?"

_Children_. _With Jacob_.

_What a beautiful notion_.

I'd thought about it more than once; dreamed of it, even. But I knew school should come first regardless of whether I needed a job or ever planned to use my degree. It was the natural progression of life. Well…human life at least. College, marriage, and then kids.

But I was only a freshman and would be going to Alaska with zero college credits. Did I really want to wait four whole years to marry Jacob? _Hell no_. Human standards didn't apply to supernatural beings. Not when it came to matters of the heart.

Humans had flighty tendencies and a constant torrent of _ME, ME, ME, ME! _flowing through their frontal lobe.

Vampires mated for life, and the imprint was irrefutable. My heart and soul _belonged_ to Jacob Black. I'd marry him the second he was ready. He was part of me. Nothing else mattered. I loved my parents and family, but he was something bigger than that; a force of nature that altered my soul eternally.

"I can promise to not _try_ to have children. But destiny is destiny. Look at Kimber, she had an IUD and got pregnant."

He relaxed a little. That probably wasn't the response he was expecting given my train of thought prior to speaking. "Fair enough I guess."

For the first time in a _very_ _long_ time, I pulled my father into an embrace without feeling awkward or forced. "I love you, Dad."

He held me against him tightly. "I love you too, sweetie."

I sulked in my room for a while, thinking of how selfish and inconsiderate I had been. Never did I think that money would have made him feel the way he did. Alice came in and apologized to me for practically forcing the Sak's gift card on him. She promised to leave him alone except for birthdays and Christmas. I told her she didn't need to apologize to me, that it was Jacob she needed to talk to.

I didn't necessarily think he needed new clothes. The clothes he had were nice. Then something occurred to me – Jacob's clothes were in Athens, all but the same four outfits he packed when we went to Atlanta for the concert.

I dug through my purse for my phone. There was no way Jacob would go for buying new clothes, and while his _could_ be shipped, why not have them personally delivered to Washington? Hopefully Embry wasn't put off by my idea.

"Ness! Hey! Are you guys alright?" Hannah said, her voice a mix of excitement and concern.

We chatted about our weeks for a while. She and Embry were glued to each other just like me and Jacob, only they didn't have any privacy. That played to my advantage.

"How opposed are you to skipping class Monday and Tuesday?"

"Not completely. What do you have in mind?"

"Jacob and I are going to Washington to meet his family. I could use some familiar faces," I said hesitantly.

She didn't speak for a moment. I heard Embry in the background. It sounded like he was trying to convince her. They deliberated for a few minutes. Hannah was nervous about meeting his family, a factor that didn't occur to me until I overheard their conversation.

"And I'm to assume that the tickets are on you?" she asked. Her voice sounded like she was hoping I'd say no.

"Yep! You'll leave tomorrow."

She sighed. "Fine. Where are you staying?"

"We're camping."

Hannah wasn't thrilled about the idea of camping, so I decided to book them a hotel room somewhere nearby. They desperately needed the privacy. As an added bonus, we would have our own privacy since they wouldn't be with us.

She was just as nervous as I was about meeting everyone. I was getting really excited but couldn't enjoy it since Jacob and I hadn't made amends. He and Mom were still talking as far as I knew…which bothered me in ways it shouldn't.

I heard Kimber making her way down the hall on crutches and went to assist her. She smiled as I approached.

"I can do it." She hated using the wheelchair. Instead, she hobbled her disproportioned-self around on crutches.

We had spent a lot of time together since Jacob and I got into town. With the tension between us long gone, we were able to develop a real bond. Now, we were inseparable.

She brought out a part of me that I'd never known. And being myself around her was so easy. We talked about things I'd never been able to open up to anyone about…other than Jacob, of course. There were awkward moments, like when I would talk about my sex life with Jacob, but we were getting past that. I needed _someone_ to go to with questions.

"You need help packing?" Kimber asked while I helped get her comfortable on my sofa.

I cocked my eyebrow. "How do _you_ plan to help, gimp?"

She giggled. "I can wrap breakables or something. All my stuff is packed…all four boxes." She really was doing well with all of the changes in her life from what I could see.

"You've got more stuff than Jacob," I retorted.

_Jacob._ I frowned.

"Everything will be fine, honey. Your mom's quite the counselor," Kimber said smoothly.

I snarled at the thought. "Yeah, _Counselor Bella_ is out there in the woods alone with _my_ man doing what _I_ couldn't do."

"C'mon. You know it's not like that."

"She's the only other woman he's ever been emotionally attached to. I can't help it." Just thinking of her consoling him twisted my stomach into knots.

"I'm pretty sure neither of them have even the tiniest amount of feelings for each other. Now stop thinking like that and gimme something to pack!" she said, swatting me with a roll of bubble wrap.

"So what do you think about the move?" I asked. We hadn't had the opportunity to talk about it since Carlisle made the official announcement this afternoon.

"It came as a shock, but I'm really excited. Relieved, too, since we'll be a good ways away from humans."

I sat a pile of things beside her on the sofa so she could wrap them. "_And_ closer to more men of our kind," I inserted.

She perked up. "Oh, really?"

I didn't know firsthand, but the Denali women didn't seem to have a problem finding a good fuck. I'd met some of their flings when I was growing up and never saw the same one twice.

"From what I hear. The weather in the bulk of Alaska is perfect for vampires," I said, gathering a few things from my nightstand and packing them into a box.

"Good, because as soon as I have this baby, I need to find a fuck buddy. Shit, I wish I had one now because these pregnancy hormones are _killing_ me. I want it non-stop. And it doesn't help living with a bunch of vampires with _no_ modesty when it comes to keeping the noise down." She wrapped my items roughly through her frustration. It was funny, but I kept myself from laughing out loud.

"Honey, they probably _are_ trying to keep the noise down. What about more than a fuck buddy? Being around all these couples doesn't make you want to give commitment another shot? Vampire relationships aren't like human ones, you know."

I glanced over to see her reaction. She looked intrigued. "So I've heard. I don't know if I'm ready for all that. I've only had one serious boyfriend and he pretty much ruined my chances of ever trusting anyone of the opposite sex again. Besides, what kind of guy is going to want to commit to someone with a _baby_?"

I had no experience in this department, but some things were common sense. "First of all, my father _reads minds_. Trust problem solved. And second, any guy who would consider the baby a drawback isn't worth it. If a guy does show interest in you _and_ knows you're a mommy, snatch him up immediately. Ugh. This is pointless. I know you're not going to change your mind regardless of what I say."

She grinned slightly and rolled her eyes. "You're killing me. One step at a time. I'm in no rush to fall in love…even if I am surrounded by five of the most lovesick, overly affectionate couples I've ever seen in my life."

Not long ago, I could see where she was coming from. Love was never something I was interested in…until I met Jacob. It was as though I'd been waiting all my life for him and him alone.

"Well there's a lot less fish in the vampire sea, so don't close yourself off."

She glared at me. "_Ness._"

I held my hands up in defense. "Fine, fine. Just sayin'."

It took me a little while longer to finish packing my things. I had the most sentimental possessions out of everyone. I couldn't let them go. Growing up so fast and having such a short childhood left me holding on to the things that reminded me of that period of my life. I was supposed to be almost nineteen, and here I was packing up my first teddy bear and the blanket Esme knitted me – both of which I still kept on my bed – among other things I'd had since infancy.

After all that work, I was pretty exhausted. Kimber was tired _all_ the time so I knew she was about ready for a nap, too. We curled up together on the bed I'd been sleeping in, though my head rested on the pillow Jacob had been using.She took up most of the queen bed, leaving me to weave myself through her limbs and against her torso. Once I was comfortable she pulled me in closer.

"You're so warm," she murmured as she drifted to sleep.

Little baby kicks against where my stomach was pressed to hers kept me awake for a little while. It was the most miraculous thing I'd ever felt. A human may not have been able to discern the tiny movements, but I could feel each little flutter against me.

After some internal debate, I reached up her shirt and caressed her stomach, enjoying the little flickers of movement. Kimber's skin was nothing like anything I was used to. Jacob was hotter, and my family was _much_ colder. The texture of it was different, too. My family was smooth as marble, and Jacob was pliant but still silky. Soon, though, she would be cold and hard.

The only thing that mattered was what was on the inside, and she would _always_ be Kimber.

Eventually I fell asleep. Kimber's death grip never loosened, but I was comfortable. She had a pleasant scent and her rhythmic breaths were soothing.

At some point Jacob entered my room, but he didn't wake me. Instead, he sat in a chair beside the bed and apparently watched me sleep. When I woke I realized that the position Kimber and I were in could have been considered inappropriate. I had kicked my pants off and Kimber wasn't wearing much to begin with. Her hand was resting on the small of my back, our legs intertwined, and our faces only a couple inches apart. The hand I had rested on her stomach had slid around to her back, holding her close to me.

I peeled myself away from her carefully and guided Jacob out of the now-dark room. Kimber didn't stir. I pushed him into the hall bathroom and locked the door. Our lips crashed together as if on instinct.

"I'm so sorry," I breathed.

"No, I'm sorry," he paused for a long breathtaking kiss, "I should never have talked to you that way."

We continued to go back and forth over who was right or wrong while sharing toe-curling kisses. My body absolutely _ached_ for him.

"Who's here?" I asked, barely tearing my lips from his.

His lips moved against mine as he spoke, "Not sure, but we can't do it here. Edward made me swear."

_Ugh_. The mention of my father brought me back to reality.

"Come on."

I didn't bother telling anyone that I was leaving as I grabbed my pants from my room and ran as quickly as I could to my car, Jacob following close behind. We hauled ass out the driveway and down the street. A few minutes later we were parked at the back of a subdivision that was under construction.

I told Jacob to take his shorts and boxers off as I practically ripped off my jeans. This was the first time I'd ever wished my car was more than just a two seater. Hell, an RV wouldn't have been big enough for us.

I crawled over the gear shifter and straddled his lap, rubbing myself against his growing erection. My mouth found his in the darkness. His hands slid over my ass and then gripped it roughly.

"Fuck, I need you so bad," he said. His low, gravely voice sent a surge of wetness between my legs.

I didn't make him wait. I didn't waste time with foreplay. My body only registered the base need to be filled by him. I moved my hips down, slipping him inside me, taking every inch of his hot hardness. I shifted against his body quickly, earning a guttural groan from this incredibly sexy man.

My breathing came in pants as one of his hands slid between our bodies. He yanked my shirt off and unclasped my bra, moving it up out of his way, freeing my breasts which were pressed close to his face. His tongue and lips and teeth assaulted them while his hand moved farther down until it reached my most sensitive place. My legs shook but I managed to keep myself grinding against his lap.

"I can't do this. I need more," he groaned roughly. He opened the car door and I thought I had done something terribly wrong. Instead of throwing me off of him like I thought he was going to, he held me against him, his cock still filling me, until I was pressed against the hood of the car.

This was _much_ better. He held my wrists above my head and absolutely drilled into me over and over. It wasn't an angry fuck, though. The look in those deep brown eyes held so much raw emotion; adoration and need and remorse…but more than anything, love.

It was all I could do to keep from moaning loudly, so he leaned over my body and our tongues melded together. I touched his face – though it was probably unnecessary, he could undoubtedly see and feel everything going through my mind – and showed him what I wanted.

Without a word, he flipped me over and continued to thrust in and out roughly, smacking my ass a few times. I loved how it felt to be dominated by him.

"Come for me," he growled. He pulled my hair just a little, further arching my back. He knew just how much I loved that shit.

My orgasm built quickly. Any notion to keep my voice down was long forgotten. At this point I was nearly screaming. My cries for more were met with deeper, harder thrusts. My body tingled all over and it was as though I were in a different place entirely, somewhere only Jacob and I existed.

My walls clenched around his shaft and my body shuddered. The final seconds of my climax were intensified by Jacob's swelling cock stretching me. At last, his orgasm shot deep into my body. I basked in the wet feel of it, and somewhere deep in the back of my mind I wished that it wasn't in vain, that his seed could find what it was desperately searching for.

Then Jacob turned my head and kissed me…_hard_.

"Do you know how happy that makes me?" he breathed against my ear, still buried within me. "How much I want that with you?"

With heavy breaths and glowing eyes, he flipped me over and returned his attention to my mouth. After a few hours…or maybe it was a few minutes, he pulled back just enough to murmur, "God, I love you so much."

"I love you, too," I replied breathlessly.

I began to feel his load seep out of my body and down to my thighs. It was bittersweet; a turn-on, yet saddening that the promise it held wouldn't come to fruition.

**A/N: I won't promise a speedy update. It may be around the 3****rd**** or 4****th**** before I post again (well, that's not bad, just not my usual). But after that, I'll be back to weekly posting. **

**I'd love some reviews…it's been a while. Reviews get a teaser for the next chapter and they'll be sent in less than a week. **

**Thank you to my betas, DeeDreamer and EssatheTwerp21! **

**Hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and New Years! **


	23. Torsion

**A/N: Special thanks to jkane180 for guest-betaing this chapter while EssatheTwerp21 is out on her honeymoon. Congrats on getting hitched girl! And of course, thanks to DeeDreamer also! **

**Chapter 23 – Torsion **

**NPOV**

We took our time getting back to the house, spending a while sitting on my hood in the empty subdivision. I wasn't ready to go back yet. Jacob and I were apart for much of the day, and I wasn't used to it. I needed to get my fill before having to sleep in a separate bed from him and limiting my thoughts and conversations to things my father and family wouldn't object to.

"Were you upset earlier…about me and Kimber?"

"No, why? Did you do something that would upset me?" he asked, playing with my hair absently.

"No, we were just sleeping. She was coiled around me like a cobra, that's all."

His cheeks had a tinge of pink as he said, "It was sort of beautiful. Not Kimber, I mean, she's okay and all…but I mean…her all pregnant and you two cuddled together…it was like living art or something. Just beautiful."

I smiled. He was too fucking cute. "That's sweet. And Kimber is beautiful, too."

He half smiled, laying back on the windshield and pulling me with him. "If you say so."

I'd worried that Jacob would be jealous – or worse, pissed – at the scene he walked into. He knew I was attracted to her, and I prayed he didn't get the wrong idea. Sure, Kimber was gorgeous – and would become a _stunning _vampire in a couple of weeks – but her rounded belly was anything but a turn on for me. Maybe one day, if Jacob was okay with it, we could let our attraction lead to something, but not now.

With that little issue resolved, it was time to get to more important matters.

"Jacob, can I ask you something?" I asked hesitantly.

He turned to face me. "You just did," he joked.

I punched him in the arm playfully.

"Ow!" he yelped, rubbing his generously proportioned bicep.

"I'm serious," I said apologetically. I turned my head to face the sky. _Coward. _

"Ask me anything."

I swallowed, trying to get the huge knot in my throat to go down. My heart raced and Jacob responded by squeezing my hand.

"What's wrong?"

I saw his body shift beside me, but I couldn't look at him. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. "What um…did you and my mom talk about?"

I felt like it wasn't any of my business, but I _had_ to know.

"You and me mostly. The money thing, too."

_What a vague answer…_Maybe he didn't want to talk about it.

"And you guys came to some sort of resolution?"

"I think so. Alice isn't going to shove shit down my throat anymore…and I learned some things."

I turned to face him finally. "Alice wasn't the only one at fault. I really am sorry for being so selfish and inconsiderate."

His large hand stroked my cheek. "You're not allowed to apologize anymore. I love you. We were irrational, and it's to be expected. It'll take time for us to learn how to deal with each other's…less desirable traits. We've got to learn how to communicate when we're angry or irritated, learn when to part ways for a little while. Because, unfortunately, no matter how much I love you or how perfect you are, you're bound to piss me off from time to time. Likewise with you. And that's normal." He had to be the most amazing man in the world. He kissed me then, lightly on the lips, warming my heart.

"Did my mom tell you all that?" I asked suspiciously, smirking.

"How'd you know?"

"Only my mom could look at something so emotion-driven and break it down into something logical and reasonable," I replied lightheartedly.

He kissed me again. "Doesn't mean it's not accurate or that I believe it any less. Truth is, we don't know shit about being in a serious relationship or sharing so much of ourselves. We know that we love each other more than anything, but it takes more than love for two hot-headed people to have a healthy, happy relationship."

I nodded in agreement and rolled onto my side so that our bodies were facing each other. He pulled me closer to him. "You're absolutely right…or my mom is," I added with a light laugh.

"You should talk to her. She's pretty knowledgeable about all this relationship stuff." He gestured between the two of us.

"Yeah, and all these years I thought my parents waited until I was asleep to argue." His hand skimming across the small of my back was making it difficult to focus on our conversation.

"She said that they argue sometimes, but not often. No one's perfect. You come pretty damn close, though," he said with that sexy, charming smile of his.

"I love you," I murmured as his lips pressed to mine.

And to think, this amazing man was all mine for eternity.

Sunday went by in a blur. Everyone was making arrangements for the move. We would be staying in a house my family lived in several decades ago until they were able to close on a larger one. They purchased the Douglas house prior to Alice and Jasper – and obviously my mother and I – joined the family.

It would be even more temporary for Jacob and me. He was already looking for a job online. Jasper fudged his resume a bit. Jacob was smart, but his work history was slim. He knew a lot about working on cars, and he hoped that his mechanical knowledge would help him land a job on one of the oil rigs near Juneau.

With a little coercion from Mom, Jacob agreed to let them help us get started on our own – only because he didn't want me to go without anything since it would probably take a month or two for us to get on our feet otherwise. As long as I had him and an occasional blood meal, I didn't need anything else, but he didn't see it that way.

I took it upon myself to find a few houses that were for rent near UA. I didn't want him to feel obligated to choose something lavish and more expensive than what he could afford. There was a little ranch house that I absolutely fell in love with. It had a modest yard, master suite with a garden tub, and a big kitchen I could use to cook meals for my incredible man. Even though we were renting, I still wanted to find something just right since we'd probably be there the whole time we were in college.

That's when it started to feel real. Jacob and I would be _living _together. _Alone_. We would have _our_ house with _our_ kitchen and _our_ bed.

My stomach flip-flopped. _Are we ready for this?_

Ready or not, there was never a doubt in my mind that we would be living together one day, and I absolutely loathed being away from him, so why not? To hell with human conventions; he was the love of my life, and we would get past anything that came at us. Besides, now that we'd spent _so_ much time together, it would be impossible to live apart.

Later in the day, Mom and I spent a good deal of time talking about relationships. I felt like Jacob and I were at a good place, but that was to be excepted. Things were still new and exciting. Once the novelty wore off, it could become much different if we didn't learn the basics of how to compromise and communicate with one another. Even though her advice was helpful, I knew that having it wouldn't mean we would never have arguments, especially considering how hot-headed we could get.

Neither of us had ever been in a serious relationship before and, thus, knew nothing about how to cultivate and nurture one. Jacob had helped take care of his father growing up, so that helped him learn how to put someone else's needs above his own.

I, however, had been catered to hand and foot my entire life, never having to consider anyone else's feelings, needs, or desires. Anything I wanted was mine. Even when I was going through puberty and being a complete bitch to everyone around me, they still obliged…so long as it didn't involve me leaving the house. If I wanted to watch a movie on the big television in the living room, whoever was watching it went somewhere else; if I was PMS-ing and craving king crab legs, someone would willingly drive to the ends of the earth to find them for me.

Jacob called his dad and a few of the wolves back home. Apparently Dad didn't trust them and wanted to make sure they wouldn't go ape-shit over having a half-vampire on their land. Just as Jacob said, they were fine and really excited for him regardless of my lineage.

Dad loaded up a few pieces of luggage with all the camping essentials we would need and drove us to the airport in the wee hours of Monday morning. I turned my body toward his when he came to a stop at the drop-off area. He wrapped both arms around me and squeezed tightly.

"I love you," he mumbled into my hair, taking in my scent one last time before our separation. "I'll miss you."

It felt good to know that my father would miss me in my absence. Every other time I'd been apart from him was on less-than-pleasant terms. We still had a ways to go in building a healthy relationship, but at least we were trying to reconcile.

Tears pricked my eyes. _What the fuck?_ "I'll miss you too, Dad," I choked.

"Renesmee, what's wrong, honey? Are you crying?" he asked as he pulled away, examining my face carefully.

I swatted the tears away. "Nothing, I'm fine. I don't know why I'm all emotional. It's not like I won't see you in a few days." And only recently did I think I'd actually look forward to seeing him at all.

"Don't be nervous. Everything will be fine, sweetie."

_Sweetie?_ I left that one alone. "Love you," I said, placing a quick kiss on his cheek.

My stomach was in knots the entire flight. I'd flown countless times, so I knew it wasn't some sort of motion sickness. I tried to curl into Jacob's side and fall asleep to no avail. Between the nausea and being nervous as fuck, it wasn't going to happen. No matter what I tried – reading, listening to music, watching the in-flight movie – the nausea persisted. I'd never experienced anything like this before. But then again, I'd never been so nervous in all my life.

As if I didn't feel horrible enough, the plane started going through some turbulence, and I knew I was going to lose my breakfast. I pushed past Jacob and bolted to the bathroom, spilling the contents of my stomach just as I reached the toilet.

Jacob came to check on me and asked to come in. I told him I was fine and to go back to his seat. My stomach settled significantly after vomiting. Today was _not_ the day to be sick and disgusting-looking. I was supposed to meet his father and sister in a few short hours, and as I checked my reflection, I realized that I looked about as hot as I felt. _Great._

When we landed in Seattle, I took a while to get myself together in the disgusting public restroom. I wasn't at my best, but I looked a lot better than I had eight hours ago. After I finished touching up my makeup and brushing my teeth – ignoring the gazes of strangers washing their hands – we picked up our rental car and began the three hour drive to Jacob's hometown, La Push.

The long ride was a curse and a blessing. On one hand, it _sucked_ to be stuck in the car for so long when I didn't feel too great; on the other, it gave me time to get myself together before we got there. The queasiness and unease were gone, but I was still left with a raging case of butterflies.

The scenery whizzing by the car window was nothing like the places I'd been before, yet it seemed oddly familiar. We'd lived in the east for a long while, and before that, we lived in Canada. The dreary weather was a given anywhere we lived, but things were so much more lush and green in Washington. It felt peaceful, calming even. There was no traffic or chaotic, cosmopolitan areas, just the occasional small town.

The GPS on the dash of our rented Maxima said we were fifteen minutes from our destination when the speedometer began to creep closer and closer to ninety. Jacob turned down a winding side road that even I would have slowed down on and kept his foot pressed firmly against the accelerator. At first I thought it was excitement that had him in a rush, but his eyes were tense and he was gripping the wheel so tightly that his tan knuckles were white.

"Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, fine. I gotta piss, that's all," he replied, not taking his eyes off the road.

"You're lying," I said flatly. It was blatantly obvious. His rigid posture and the nervous tone in his voice were dead giveaways.

"I'm just ready to be there." He whipped around a curve in the road at seventy miles per hour. The police car that was tucked behind some trees went unseen until it was too late. Blue lights flashed the second we flew by. Jacob didn't slow down, though.

"_FUCK_!" he roared.

"Jacob, you have to stop! You can't outrun the cops in a fucking six cylinder Maxima!" I shouted.

He banged his head back against the headrest and growled, muttering obscenities. I'd never seen this side of him; angry, yes…but there was something else there, too. Worry? Nervousness? _It's just a ticket; what's his deal?_

Jacob fished his license out of his wallet and rolled down the window. "Ness, will you look for the registration and insurance? I think it's in the glove box," he asked gruffly.

I rifled through the stack of paperwork we'd been given at the Enterprise counter. I was still recovering from in-flight nausea and had paid zero attention as the woman behind the counter explained the documentation.

"License and registration, please," a low, gravelly voice asked. "Jacob! Is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me. How ya' been?" Whoever the officer was didn't elicit the same level of enthusiasm from Jacob.

I turned my attention to the conversation. It seemed like the polite thing to do.

"Pretty good, I guess. You in town for a while?"

"Nah, just a few days," Jacob replied, not doing a very good job of masking his disinterest in the conversation.

"Well, that's too bad. Your dad said he's coming down with something. You got a friend with you?" the officer asked, crouching down so he could peer through the window at me. I politely met his gaze with a small smile.

"Yeah, um. This is, uh…Ness. Ness, this is…Charlie."

His eyes were a mirror image of my own. Not just the color, but shape and all. He stood there absolutely dumbfounded for a long moment, staring at me as if he'd seen a ghost. I couldn't take my eyes off him, either. His mouth tightened the exact same way my mother's did when she was anxious or upset about something.

My inhale got stuck in my throat when I finally realized what was going on. I knew my mother had known Jacob before I was born, quite well actually. Jacob had never lived anywhere other than La Push, so naturally Mom lived somewhere nearby. But she never once in my entire life mentioned living relatives. Not a single one.

My eyes flicked down to the silver name plate on his chest. _Swan._ Charlie_ Swan._ He shared the same last name that my mother had before she married my father. The only reason I knew this was because of the disgusting role-play games my parents would act out when they thought I was asleep. _Miss Swan_ was the naughty pupil, and _Mr. Masen_ was the strict teacher. It made my stomach wretch just remembering it. _Ugh_. They were both pretty humiliated when I asked them where the name Swan came from, but they explained it anyway.

So many things ran through my mind. My heart was racing and the nausea started coming back. I was too taken aback to form words – neither in my mind nor aloud – so I grasped Jacob's hand and let him feel my emotions. Shock. Confusion. Nervousness. Excitement.

"Well, Chief, are you giving me a ticket or just a slap on the wrist?" Jacob asked nonchalantly, breaking the silence.

Charlie snapped out of his reverie with a slight head shake. "Yeah, um, slow it down, Jake," he said, slowly moving away from the window. "Have a good one."

I watched Charlie sit in his car through the side mirror as we pulled back onto the road. He was staring off into space, probably feeling about the same as I did. He suspected something, of that I was certain.

For the second time that day, I cried. My parents always did what they thought was best for me, but did they honestly think keeping me away from my human family was best? Could they not make one exception to the rule and allow one person to know our secret? Not even the whole truth, just _enough_ of it so that we could keep in touch. Perhaps having a human in my life would have given me some semblance of normalcy and helped me better understand my human side.

Jacob hadn't spoken since we got back on the road. It pissed me off because he knew how I was feeling, and I was somehow supposed to pull myself together in the next fifteen minutes before we arrived at his dad's house. Once he noticed the tears, though, he tried to console me.

"Ness, baby, don't cry." He was trying to come off as soothing, but he wasn't fooling me. I could see the tension behind the façade.

"Who is he?" I asked in a broken voice.

He stiffened. "I…You…It _kills_ me to say this, but this is something you'll have to take up with your parents."

"So you know who he is, and you won't tell me anything? I would _never_ do that to you, Jacob. Never. I've kept quiet about your willingness to follow my dad's stupid rules, but this is important. _Please,_ Jacob. They'll never tell me anything, _and_ from the way you've reacted, I can guess that you know they're going to be pissed at you about this anyway. _Please_ just tell me…I have to know," I broke off in a broken whisper.

I heard his heartbeat quicken. "You're putting me in a really tough position. This is something far beyond me, and I'm not so sure I should be the one you hear it from."

At this point, I knew he was someone important; otherwise Jacob wouldn't have made such a big deal about it. I _would_ find out, even if it meant using unfair means. I truly hated to put Jacob right in the middle of what I was sure would be a huge argument with my parents, but I needed to know _now_. My parents would never tell me anything, and Jacob's resolve was already faltering. This could be the only chance I had.

"Is he an uncle of mine?"

"_Ness,_" he grumbled.

"Grandfather?" I pried.

He didn't have to respond aloud because his body said it all. He swallowed hard and released a sharp breath.

"Look at me," I pleaded.

He didn't speak when he turned his head away from the road momentarily. Defeat was written all over his expression.

"I have a biological grandfather?" I asked softly, mainly to myself. The butterflies in my stomach were really worked up now. More tears fell, but they weren't from sadness. I was happy. _So_ happy. Even if we couldn't tell him our secret, I _had_ to know him.

The downside to all this was that the wedge between my parents and I – the one that only recently began to work its way out – was shoved right back where it had been. It disgusted me that my mother completely abandoned her own father. Maybe her mother as well, who knew?

I straightened myself out and took a deep, calming breath. "I have to see him again. He's family, Jacob. _Damn_ my parents. I'm capable of making my own decisions," I said with an edge of finality.

He sighed in resignation. "You have to call Bella and Edward first."

I leaned over the arm rest and placed a quick kiss on his cheek. "I love you."

"Love _you_, babe," he replied with a quick kiss in return.

Jacob visibly relaxed as we drove past a rustic sign that marked the border of La Push. A contented smile appeared and the tension around his eyes evaporated. The car slowed as he gazed appreciatively at various landmarks as they passed. Most of them looked old enough to have been there long before he was born. He seemed so genuinely happy.

"You know, this is the first time that I've actually _wanted_ to be here in years," he said as we pulled down a gravel drive.

I swallowed the growing lump in my throat and watched the front door crack open. A tall, dark-skinned woman pushed a wheelchair across the threshold. My heart sped considerably. I wasn't expecting to meet anyone other than his father until later in the evening at dinner.

I wasn't ready for this. What if she hated me? What if she held what happened all those years ago against me? My parents told me that Billy, Jacob's father, was one of the kindest people I would ever meet and that he would accept me regardless. No one made mention of anyone else though.

The faces of the pair on the porch mirrored Jacob's – sheer happiness.

He squeezed my hand and brought the back of it to his lips chastely. "Calm down. They'll love you, I swear."

The impression I left his family with today would be everlasting. I straightened my shoulders, buried my insecurities, and got out of the car.

_God, please let them like me._

**A/N: Reviews will receive a teaser in reply. Thanks! **


	24. Jumping to Conclusions

**Chapter 24 – Jumping to Conclusions**

**Rachel POV **

**A/N: This will be the only chapter in anyone else's POV. Sorry, I know some of you really aren't interested in anyone else's POV, but I feel pretty good about it. **

Ever since I had heard that Jacob would be bringing home his imprint – who just so happened to be the child of Bella and Edward _Cullen_, the pair responsible for my baby brother's misery for the last several years – my emotions had been highly conflicted. On one hand, I was happy that Jacob was no longer the morose shell of a man he'd been for the last seven years, but on the other, did it have to be a _Cullen_?

I knew that the imprint made Jacob blind to any faults she may have, so the fact that he absolutely adored her meant little to me. I would form my own opinions of the _Cullen_ girl. Being an imprint myself, I was able to look at things subjectively, ignore the obvious affection they may share and see things for what they really were…or weren't.

Ultimately, I knew my opinions wouldn't matter to anyone but myself and perhaps a few of the other imprinted girls. If I thought she was a worthless slut, it wouldn't make Jacob love her any less.

I watched from the front door as Jacob appeared to reassure her. She looked nervous as hell. _Good._ Maybe I was being overly-critical, but seeing my brother go through so much pain made me even more protective of him than I had been by nature. Imprint or not, any woman who walked into his life would be under my scrutinizing microscope.

She was beautiful, of course. Her clothes looked expensive but not showy. She walked with poise and confidence. Her smile was what caught my attention the most, though. It looked so genuine and heartfelt, like her innermost feelings were reflected outwardly through her expression.

I sort of felt like a bitch. She wasn't at all what I'd envisioned, and I was ready to hang her for someone else's mistakes before so much as giving her a chance. With my resentment for her parents tucked away, I smiled back at her.

"Jacob!" I called as he approached.

"Hey Rach," he replied, hugging me tightly. "Good to see ya, Dad." He proceeded to lean down and hug him as well. This was the most animated I'd seen Jacob in so long. If I was happy before, I was absolutely ecstatic for him now.

Renesmee shyly stood slightly behind his large frame, watching our warm exchange. Jacob twisted his arm around her thin waist and pulled her closer to us on the small porch.

"Dad, Rachel, this is my Ness," he said with a huge smile plastered across his face, gazing at his imprint with palpable love.

She leaned forward and hugged my father. "It's so good to meet you guys," she said earnestly.

There was an awkward second where she stood appraising me, trying to decide whether a handshake or hug would be more appropriate. I did her a favor and closed the space between us, hugging her shoulders lightly. She was warm, like the wolves. I'd expected her to be icy cold.

The four of us squeezed into the living room and conversed over some snacks I'd brought over for the occasion. I recalled snidely wondering if I should have Paul fetch me a fresh elk to go with the chips and chicken bites.

"Where are you guys staying? The resort?" I asked. I couldn't imagine Jacob mingling with the well-to-do's at the fairly new golf resort by the waterfront, the council's attempt to bring revenue and jobs to the reservation. At least it wasn't a casino.

"Naah, we're camping," Jake replied casually.

_Princess Cullen _camps_?_

I couldn't hide the look of surprise that crossed my face. Renesmee didn't notice. She was focused on my father who was giving his speech on the economic growth in the reservation since the resort was opened eighteen months ago. But Jacob noticed. He glared at me and mouthed, _Be nice._

It was impossible to miss the connection between the pair. The way they looked at each other was sickening yet endearing. Every glance was a silent profession of love and was equally matched with a smile of adoration.

Paul and I used to be like that; back before children, jobs, and bills.

Renesmee seemed like a decent enough person for my little – albeit _mammoth_ – brother. She was respectful toward my father, which was very important to me. She listened to us chat with discernible interest. She wasn't snobby like I thought she'd be. There was a balance between the couple's personalities, like they were an equal match for one another. All and all, she'd thus far proven herself worthy of my approval…as if it mattered either way.

We parted ways after an hour or so. They had to get their campsite set up while it wasn't raining and I had to finish getting things ready at home for the cookout later. Everyone was coming to meet Renesmee and Hannah, Embry's new imprint. At first I worried that the whole debacle would further inflate Princess Cullen's ego, but as it turned out, she was fairly modest, a word I never thought I'd use in reference to a Cullen.

My five year old twins, Lauren and PJ, were eager to meet Renesmee. They knew all about our legends – the PG version, at least – and were thrilled to actually get to meet a real vampire, even if she was only half. PJ futilely hoped Renesmee's presence would provoke him to phase like his daddy did, while Lauren wanted to catch a glimpse of sparkling skin, and according to Jacob, that wouldn't happen either.

Jacob and Renesmee arrived before anyone else, with my father in tow. I tried not to notice how her hair wasn't quite as perfect as it was earlier or how her clothes were slightly rumpled from doing who-knows-what in the forest. _Eeew_. We smiled politely at each other and I wrinkled my nose in disgust at Jacob once Renesmee had her back turned.

"Can I help with anything?" she asked eagerly.

Just then, PJ and Lauren came barreling down the stairs shrieking with excitement.

"Uncle Jake! Uncle Jake! Is this your vampire girlfriend?" Lauren squealed.

PJ stood in silence, staring at her admirably. He tugged Jacob's shirt and he leaned down so that PJ could whisper in his ear. "She's _pretty_," he said, his loud whisper doing absolutely nothing to conceal his awe.

Renesmee beamed, gazing at both my darlings with a sparkle in her eye.

"Paul Junior, Lauren, meet my Ness," Jacob said with a grand gesture to his imprint.

"Hi Ness! I'm Lauren!" my little angel said eagerly.

PJ stared in awe. "And who's this handsome guy?" Renesmee asked.

My son stood tall and extended a hand. "I'm Paul Junior. It's nice to meet you, Ness."

Renesmee leaned down and hugged both children.

She never got to help me with anything. Lauren and PJ were practically glued to her. I watched out the kitchen window as she dazzled them with her vampiric talents in the back yard. You'd never know she was an only child or that she'd never been around children before – a couple of pieces of information I pried from Jacob when he took a bathroom break. It looked like second nature to her. She ran around the lawn at full speed with them on her back like it was something she'd done hundreds of times.

Emily – my best friend – and I chatted in the kitchen while we finished cooking the food. Her children had joined the merriment with Sam guarding nearby. He wasn't as trusting of her as some of us, claiming that "a leech is a leech." I didn't know her well enough to form my own level of trust, but I did trust my brother, and he said that there was absolutely nothing to worry about. I couldn't blame Sam for being on alert, though.

I called for everyone to come serve themselves. PJ was the first to come flying up the stairs of our deck dragging his "new girlfriend" along with him. The events that transpired came in slow motion. He tripped over his own feet, his knee landing on a damn nail that stuck out from the wood. Renesmee scooped his screaming body up at once, blood running down his leg.

_Blood._

_Oh shit. _

Sam peeled PJ from her nurturing arms immediately, rushing him to the other side of the yard. Renesmee sat on the steps frozen in shock, tears streaming down her face, her body trembling.

I ran out the back door to PJ's side, examining the wound. It wasn't deep enough to merit _another_ trip to the hospital.

"I wasn't going to hurt him," Renesmee murmured. I turned around briefly to see her sitting on the stairs with her face buried in Jacob's shoulder. "I was just trying to help."

It broke my heart into a thousand pieces to see how hurt she was. Sam thought she was going for the kill and she knew it. I briefly thought the same thing until I saw her consoling him for the split second he was in her arms.

But was it wrong for us to jump to this conclusion? She _was_ half-vampire. It was in her nature to thirst for blood, even if it was marginal in comparison to a full vampire.

"They didn't know, Ness. It's okay. They know now. It won't happen again, I promise," Jacob murmured.

He was right. I would make damn sure that no one came to that conclusion again. I just hated that it had taken an incident like this to prove to everyone that she was no harm to us or our children.

Once the kids were in bed – they were accustomed to big sleepovers like this – and Billy was taken home, it was time for the real party to begin. Paul and Jacob went down to the basement to round up the booze. I had already briefly apologized to Renesmee for what had happened earlier, but I felt like it wasn't enough.

I took a seat beside her on a bench out back. "I just want to say I'm sorry again. About earlier. No one meant to hurt your feelings," I said quietly, wishing we had a bit more privacy.

Her eyes widened. "No, it's okay. Really. I can't blame you guys at all. You don't know anything about me or my...thirst," she said shamefully.

"I admit, I do drink blood, but only because it's what sustains me. The only time I've had…you know…_the good stuff_ is when my grandfather provided me with donated blood, and that was only when I was an infant and just recently I had a little bit he was giving to my friend, Kimber. She's pregnant with a halfsie like me so she needs it. Other than that, the occasional bear or deer is all I require. I don't crave it like my family does, thank God."

"Well I still feel like a shit for jumping to conclusions. It's one thing for Sam to be over-protective, but I should have put more trust in you," I said sincerely.

"I'm kicking your ass this time, Brady," Seth said as the two rushed by us, carrying the Beer Pong table and a stack of plastic cups. _Great, it's going to be one of _those_ nights._

Jacob wiggled his large form between the two of us, wrapping an arm around both our shoulders. "I just love seeing my two favorite women getting along so well," he said contently, "but it's time for all this heart-to-heart shit to come to a close. There's liquor to be had."

I'd never seen my baby brother drunk before. I was pretty sure the only person who had was Embry. _This should be fun._

**A/N: **

**Back to Jacob/Renesmee POVs after this. I don't have any other varying POV chapters planned. **

**What'd you think? Teaser in reply…**


	25. None of the right questions

**Chapter 25 – None of the right questions **

**JPOV**

**A/N: I know I promised a teaser, but the last few weeks have been nuts. I'll spare you the deets, as I'm sure you're ready to read! **

The back deck of Rachel's house was alive with loud music and laughter. The girls were casually piled together in each other's laps at the patio table. The guys gave the mass of estrogen a wide berth by keeping to the opposite end of the covered wrap-around.

I tossed back a shot of Jack after having failed at yet _another_ turn at Modified Beer Pong. Paul had come up with his own version of the game to compensate for the wolves' heightened senses and abilities.

The table was about sixteen feet long. Shot glasses of liquor were used in place of plastic cups of beer, and rubber bouncy-balls in place of ping-pong balls. The damn game just got more and more impossible with every round.

But that was the point, wasn't it?

I stepped aside and let my ears sift through the throng of overlapping voices. It only took a second to pinpoint Ness's, her easy, confident tone rising above the others as she conversed with the imprinted girls.

I eavesdropped on their conversation, completely ignoring the guys ribbing each other as they rotated around the Beer Pong table. Ness and Hannah were answering seemingly endless questions from the other imprints, some general, others more personal. Ness knew I was staring, but kept her focus on the conversation at hand.

Every few minutes, her eyes would wander across the space between us and she'd smile at me, the sparkle in her eyes resembling the stars that shone in the unusually clear night sky.

In that moment, everything felt so perfect: my sister approved of Ness – which wasn't a requirement on any level, but it sure was nice. Once the kids had been put to bed, they'd spent a lot of time talking and laughing together. And Ness was so comfortable around the pack and their companions, carrying on casually like she'd known them for years.

That was, until Hannah answered Kim's question, "What's the wildest thing you've ever done in bed?"

It wasn't unusual for the girls to share such private information. When your husbands and boyfriends had spent years seeing each other's most intimate thoughts, there were no secrets. However, Embry and I weren't mentally connected to the larger pack, and thus, our sex lives didn't go any farther than the two of us and our imprints.

Unless it was shared voluntarily…

"Renesmee," Hannah replied with a drunken giggle. She nibbled her lip and glanced across the table at Ness with a whole lot of suggestion.

At once, all the guys stopped cutting up and looked over to the group, waiting for the train wreck to ensue like a bunch of gossip-hungry old biddies.

"Well, technically it wasn't a bed, but—"

"Hannah!" Ness screamed. With her elbows planted firmly on the table, she buried her face in her hands.

Silence stretched for what felt like hours while Ness kept her face hidden. Her body was rigid and motionless, lacking the soft quiver of sobs. I'd learned early on that Ness wasn't one to keep _anything_ bottled up. Her body language suggested impending rage and I knew that I needed to get her out of there.

Fast.

After taking three long strides in their direction, my sister saved Hannah's life. "Emily and I made it to third base!" she blurted loudly, slicing through the tension and drawing everyone's attention to her and Emily.

"Ugh! That's fucking gross!" I yelled, pretending to heave into the bushes.

"Oh shut up, Jacob," she replied lightly, rolling her eyes.

Ness showed no outward indication that she'd been on edge just moments before, snickering as she watched Emily and Rachel bicker back and forth about how that little bit of information was the only secret they'd ever managed to keep from the pack. But I knew she couldn't have let it go so easily.

Once the commotion died down a little, I pulled Ness into the house and upstairs to the kids' bathroom for some privacy. I shut the door and held both her hands in mine, hoping to get a peek into her mind, wishing she would share her thoughts and feelings willingly.

She kept me in the dark. Not even a flicker.

"I'm fine," Ness said quietly. Her eyes were slow to meet mine, but when they did, I could see her resolve in them. She may not have been _fine_ at the moment, but she would be.

"You sure you don't wanna head back to the campsite for the night?" I asked roughly, wagging my brows for effect.

"I need to save face. If we leave now, what will that say about me?"

She had a point. Although, I was a little surprised that she cared so much about the impression she made. I'd always seen Ness as the 'take me as I am' type, and I loved that about her, but it felt pretty good knowing that this was important to her.

I leaned down to kiss her. She stood on her toes eagerly. The brush of our lips seemed too quick, but it was soft and reassuring on both ends.

Ness and I went back outside before anyone could start making assumptions about what we were up to. She found a seat on the steps with my sister and Kim, Jared's wife. When I was sure that she was comfortable, I headed over to where a few of the guys were.

I needed to get some advice on my proposal – a topic that made my lungs tighten and my heart race and my entire body sweat. I pulled Jared off to the side. Aside from Paul, who for obvious reasons wasn't an option, Sam and Jared were the only married men in the group. And I wasn't sure I could keep cool around Sam after what had happened earlier. It was damn hard to not kick his ass right there in the backyard after he had hurt my Ness's feelings so deeply.

"Hey, man. Can we take a walk?" I mumbled.

He raised a brow, but once he noticed the anxiety that no doubt was written all over my face, he shrugged and grabbed his beer from the banister. We walked a couple of blocks down the street in order to get out of Ness's hearing range. With all the noise at the party, I doubted she could hear much farther than the end of the driveway, but I needed to be sure.

"So, what's up dude?" Jared asked after several long, silent minutes had passed.

"You're going to think I've lost it," I said, staring at the ground and running my hand through my hair nervously.

He chuckled. "You lost it a long time ago, man."

"I'm…I'm going to ask Ness…" I trailed off.

"To marry you?" he said in a tone several octaves higher than his normal bass.

My gaze shifted around the scenery. "You're quick."

My hands were sweating at just the thought of it. What if she said no? What if my mother's ring really _wasn't_ enough for her? What if it was too soon? I had been so confident about it all when I had spoken to Edward, but now that I was so close to actually following through, I was scared as hell.

It would _kill_ me if she declined.

"And you're coming to me for…?"

I huffed and shoved my damp hands into my pockets, my foot steadily grinding against the pavement. "I don't know. I _really_ want to ask her. I mean, we're going to be _living_ together in Alaska and it seems so juvenile for us to just _live together_. She's so much more important than that."

Jared understood the imprint bond. He had one of his own, he didn't need me to get into the specifics of just how much I loved her already and how every minute we weren't together was fifty-nine-point-nine seconds too long.

"Sounds to me like your mind's already made up, bro. Look; I asked Kim the day after we graduated high school. I would've asked her sooner, but her parents would have shit a brick... _Waaait_, what does Edward think about this? He's going to cut your nuts off, I bet," he finished jokingly.

I smirked arrogantly and looked him square in the eye so that I could see his reaction. "I got his approval."

Jared's jaw nearly hit the asphalt. "What? How? I figured he'd be all protective over her and shit. I mean, since that's how he used to be with Bella."

"What can I say, I'm a good guy," I said conceitedly, straightening my collar, raising my chin high. "But for real, he can _read minds_. He knows where I'm coming from. He respects me on some level and I'm pretty sure he knows that no one on the planet will ever take care of Ness as well as I would."

"What happens if she says no?" he said, knocking my budding reassurance to the ground.

I shrugged. "I guess I spend however long it takes proving to her that I'm the best man for the job. I'm pretty sure she won't say no, though. She kinda told me she wanted to marry me the other day. Do you think it's too soon, though? I mean, crazier things have happened, right?"

"Before I asked Kim, I talked to Sam. He pretty much told me that human relationship standards don't exactly apply to us. It's not like she's some random chick. She's your _soul mate_. Who cares what anyone else thinks," he said with an air of finality.

Having a heart-to-heart with Jared was awkward; for me, at least. It was rare that I opened up like that. He was right, though. My mind was made up and that's all that really mattered.

My return to Rachel's was greeted with the sound of Ness puking. Down the hall in the bathroom, Rachel was rubbing her back while Hannah swept a wet washcloth across her face. Seeing Ness like that worried me. I'd seen her drink a _lot_ more than she had tonight without puking. And she'd been sick during the flight that morning as well.

On the way to our campsite, I had to stop the car a couple of times so she could lean out the door and heave. She couldn't manage the walk through the woods, so I carried her all the way to the tent.

Ness was sick for the remainder of the night and well into the next morning. She returned to the tent after another trip behind the bushes and laid her head in my lap.

"We can come back in a few weeks, babe. Wouldn't you rather get better and then come back?" I asked, stroking her clammy forehead softly.

She shook her head. "It's getting better. I'll be totally fine. Let's get some hangover food or something. Is there a Waffle House around here?" Her voice was scratchy from all the vomiting.

I couldn't hold back the chuckle that escaped. "There's not a Waffle House for several hundred miles, but we've got a pretty decent diner if you want."

Nessie sat up slowly. "That's fine. I need grease and carbs ASAP."

Knowing my Ness, I knew she wouldn't give up on the Charlie issue. She was so damn persistent any time she wanted something. Those heels of hers dug deep into the ground and didn't budge. It was only a matter of time before she brought it up.

That time came sooner than I thought. Her stomach began to settle once she drank some hot tea at the diner. Her personality came bubbling back to life, complete with smiles and laughs…and her unyielding determination. Her approach was cute, though.

Her lips formed a pout and she looked up at me through her lashes. "Can we see him today?"

My stomach did a nervous flip. I couldn't refuse her _anything,_ but damn, did she have to ask _me_ this? Did it have to be _Charlie_ that pulled me over?

I couldn't look her in the eyes when I replied, so I focused on slicing up the fried eggs that the server had just dropped off. "Sure, just call your parents and we'll be on our way," I said casually.

I glanced up to see her lips form a thin line. "If you insist."

My shoulders slumped. "Don't make me out to be the bad guy. This is serious."

"Fine, I'll call them," she resigned, digging through her purse for her phone.

I felt like I was standing before a firing squad. Edward was going to be furious. I figured it wasn't _so_ bad. I already had his approval to propose and I did _try_ to keep her away from Charlie, sticking to the heavily wooded side streets and going as fast as I could push the rental car in order to get us the hell out of Forks.

"Hey Mom, can you get Dad and put me on speaker?" she said, scrunching her eyebrows and biting her lip.

I leaned in closer to Ness in order to hear their conversation as clearly as possible.

"Okay, baby, we're here. Is everything okay?" Bella asked.

Nessie rolled her eyes. "Not really. I met someone interesting yesterday. Looks a lot like us, actually."

"Hmm. That's weird," Bella replied nervously.

"Put Jacob on the phone," Edward muttered flatly.

Her eyes tightened. "Don't pin this shit on Jacob. He already told me the truth and neither of you have _any_ right to be upset with him. I know he's my grandfather and you're both assholes for keeping him from me my entire life. How could you?"

"Oh God," Bella gasped.

There was silence on the other end for a moment. "He did _WHAT_? Oh, he's dead. Tell him that," Edward roared.

"So he _is_ my grandfather?" she asked, choking back the tears that were threatening to fall from her eyes.

Silence…

"_Renesmee_…there are reasons…we can explain. Just come on home and we'll talk about it, okay? Your father and I just arrived and it's absolutely beautiful here. You're going to—"

She cut Bella off, "Shut. UP! The only reason I'm calling you is because Jacob wouldn't agree to my seeing him again until I did. And if you haven't already figured it out, he didn't tell me a damn thing. If you want to be pissed at someone, go look in a fucking mirror." She hit the _End_ button roughly and barely refrained from slamming the phone down.

I reached across the table and took her hand in mine. "I'm sorry," I said seriously, unsure of what else to say.

"It's not your fault," she murmured, swatting at the tears on her face.

"I'll keep my end of the bargain. What should we do, race around Forks until he pulls us over?" I joked.

"Invite him over for dinner at your dad's or something. I'll cook."

"You're beautiful, smart, sexy, _and_ you cook? How'd I get so lucky?" I said, grinning at her.

"Not that well, but I try. Now call your dad and plan something, please." The look she gave me could have convinced me to do anything she asked.

We were supposed to go hiking later that morning but I didn't want to risk Ness getting sick again, so we spent the day at the campsite. If living in our own place was going to be anything like the time we spent alone in the forest, my life would be _heaven_. It was so peaceful and relaxing. We didn't do anything but spend time together, and that was perfect. There were no big shindigs to get ready for, no partying or drinking, just us and nature.

Making love to Ness in such a serene, private environment was _the best_. It wasn't wild or kinky. It was the epitome of lovemaking – sensual and intimate, unadulterated affection. I didn't know if it was the scenery or the privacy, but she wanted it _a lot._

I happily obliged, taking her three times before finally disentangling our sweat-covered bodies so that we could get what she needed in order to cook dinner that evening.

Ness virtually bounced through the grocery store, and her liveliness continued all the way to Dad's house. She was really excited about seeing her grandfather again, but she was pretty nervous. I was nervous, too, but not because I was about to spend the evening with a grandfather I never knew I had. No, my tension was brought on by something much more serious.

You don't become the Chief of Police by being a blind idiot. I guessed it didn't matter if he suspected anything, though. Her determination was fierce no matter what she was doing, and I had no doubt that Bella and Charlie would be seeing each other again within a few months…somehow.

Charlie's police cruiser was in the driveway when we arrived, sending Ness into a panic. You would think she was about to cook dinner for the President or something. Apparently she wanted to have some kind of _hors d'oeuvre_ prepared for his arrival.

I gently turned her perfect face to me. "You've got to calm down, babe. There's nothing to worry about."

"I know I'm freaking out over nothing. I just want to make a good impression." She rolled the hem of her top between her thumb and forefinger anxiously. "Do you think he'll suspect anything?"

I grabbed her fidgeting hand and stroked the back of it with my thumb. Biting back my own nerves and apprehension I answered, "Probably. But that's a good thing, right? Look, it doesn't matter. Just relax and be yourself. There's some mini bottles of vodka stashed in the kitchen. Maybe that'll help calm you down."

"Ugh." She cringed. "I'm never drinking again. I'll be alright, let's go."

Her first conversation with Charlie was awkward and brief. She formally introduced herself as just Ness. They shook hands and smiled, staring into each other's identical eyes, examining the similar facial features. Charlie's expression turned perplexed as Ness made her way to the kitchen.

"How do you know her again?" he asked for the second time since we arrived not five minutes prior.

"We met at school," I replied truthfully, meeting his analytical stare.

"School. Why aren't you there now?" His gaze shifted from me to the girl in the kitchen who – beyond all logic or possibility – resembled his "dead" daughter and her widower.

"Stalker ex." A half-truth, at least. "We're transferring to University of Alaska."

"Hm. Well it'll be a little closer.Knowing your driving record,"_ yeah, you should see my _running_ record,_ "you could make the trip in a couple of days; see your old man more often. But why _Alaska_?"

"It's cheap, for starters. They practically pay you to live there. And they've got a really good Environmental Engineering program."

In truth, I picked Alaska because I wanted to be closer to the reservation, but not _too_ close. I loved my family and friends, but being away from it all over the last year had given me a chance to grow up a little, have some privacy, and feel _normal_ for once. Anywhere closer than Alaska could have come with things I wasn't ready to deal with, responsibilities I wasn't willing to take on at the time.

Charlie put his round of questioning on pause, but I still caught him looking over his shoulder at Ness several times. I could see the confusion and astonishment all over his face, from the creases in his forehead to the way his mouth pursed every time he turned back around to face the TV. Sue didn't seem to be the wiser, treating Ness like the perfect stranger she was as she helped her cook.

"Alright guys! Dinner is served," my personal heaven called from the kitchen.

The three of us got up at once and took our seats at the cramped table. Ness had _lied_ to me earlier, claiming that she "tried" to cook. She managed to take something as simple as spaghetti and turn it into a gourmet meal.

"I gotta say, this is the best spaghetti I've had in a _long_ time," Charlie said, spinning his fork around the heap of noodles eagerly.

Ness perked up and smiled. "Thanks! It's all in the spices. Extra oregano and—"

"Lemme guess, fresh garlic instead of the jar stuff?" he interrupted casually, like they were talking about the weather or something equally insignificant.

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"I've had it before. My daughter, she passed a while back, she used the same trick."

Ness looked around nervously. "Oh, I'm sorry." There was a moment where the only sound was forks hitting plates. "Do you have other children?"

Charlie shook his head slightly. "Two step-kids, but they're grown. It's just me and Sue here."

That wasn't enough for Ness…damn that girl. "So you've been married before? Where's she now?"

I had to say something before things went too far. "We have plenty of time for questions, babe, take it easy," I whispered.

"We divorced ages ago. She comes up here with her husband every couple years to visit our daughter's memorial."

Ness was having a hard time controlling her anger. Her hand scampered around my leg until she found the hem of my shorts and jerked it up a bit, exposing enough skin for her to project. _I have a _grandmother_, too? Anyone else I should know about?_

I shook my head slightly.

"So, Ness, are you originally from Georgia?" Charlie attempted to seem merely curious, but the look in his eyes gave away his deep need for information.

He was figuring it out.

"No, she's from California," I blurted before Ness could give away where she's really from.

"Hmm. Any siblings? Older brothers…or sisters?"

"I'm an only child." Ness was focused on Charlie, completely ignoring the food in front of her.

"Uncles?"

"What's with the line of questioning, honey?" Sue asked, saving me from having to find a way to separate them.

"Just curious," Charlie said, returning his attention to the delicious meal.

Charlie was still there when we left for the night, spending every second he could with Ness while trying not to come off as creepy. We made plans for all of us to have dinner at his house Wednesday night.

If I'd known that Ness and Charlie would wind up meeting, I would have planned to stay in Washington a little longer, but we'd already booked and paid for our crazy-expensive flight to Alaska.

The following afternoon was beautiful. We had just returned from swimming and I watched—okay, stared in amazement, as she towel-dried her wet hair. I followed the beads of water running from her wet hair down her arms and back, taking in the flawless curves of her bikini-clad body.

My girl was fucking perfect.

My ogling continued as she laid out a blanket where the sun was beaming the most. I expected her to crack a joke when she noticed my gawking, but she just smiled a smile that warmed me from the inside. Suddenly it felt like there was too much space between us.

I lay down beside her, turning on my side and wrapping an arm around her small waist. I propped my head in my hand so I could see her face better.

This was it. _The perfect moment._ Just us, the trees, the birds, and the warm sun.

I'd envisioned at least fifteen different ideal scenarios for proposing – on the beach; a spot in the mountains with a view that spanned for miles; over a dinner that I cooked for her, among other ideas – none of them were so simple as this. But suddenly, the place or the amount of planning didn't matter as much. It felt right, like now was the perfect time. It didn't matter that it was mid-afternoon or that we were simply hanging out, doing the same thing we'd done since we got here.

My stomach was flip-flopping like crazy and my palms got sweaty. My heart sped and my fingers trembled slightly as they brushed across her face lovingly.

Ness's brows knitted. "Jacob, what's wrong?"

"Absolutely nothing is wrong. Everything is perfect…because of you."

She smiled and her cheeks turned a little pink. So. Adorable. "I love you," she said sweetly.

My heart radiated every time she said that. I kissed her lightly on the lips. "I love you," I said gruffly, my nerves making it hard to speak, "so much.

"I never thought I could feel this way. I always hated the concept of imprinting. I thought it was like being in a lovesick daze or something, like you go from living your life to having no free will. But I was far off the mark. You are so perfect for me, imprinting or not. I love everything about you – your energy, your strong-mindedness, how fun you are to be around. I couldn't have picked a better woman myself."

She rested her hand on top of mine and shared her feelings with me as I kissed her long and soft. Flashes of images played behind my eyelids. Every memory she had of us from her point of view, snippets of every kiss, every smile, every 'I love you'…every time we'd made love. All of them coated with her emotions – mostly love and happiness, and lust of course.

My tongue explored her mouth as more images came, except these had never happened….making love in what I assumed was our home in Alaska; us having a huge snowball fight with her family; hiking through some tropical jungle. The next ones made me kiss her more fervently. I was standing in the snow surrounded by both our families, wearing a tux. Then she comes into view, wearing a _wedding gown_. My heart stammered. Then the image changed. The three dark-haired, caramel skinned babies from her dreams appeared, we were playing with them on a spring day.

I sealed the kiss and hovered a few inches above her face, taking a moment to gather the nerve to ask her, praying to every deity known to man that she said yes.

"Renesmee?" I breathed.

Her phone rang. It was right beside us blaring 'Beast and the Harlot' loudly, Kimber's ringtone – some inside joke of theirs.

Ness quickly sent her to voicemail. "Sorry, you were saying something?" she murmured, kissing me once.

"M—"

The fucking phone rang again. Kimber.

"Hang on, baby. It might be important." She looked at me pleadingly as she pulled the phone to her ear.

"Hey honey, I'm really busy, what's up?" Ness mumbled.

"Oh. My. God! I met _the_ hottest guy ever yesterday. Those Denali chicks came down to welcome us to Alaska and he came with them. He said you two have met before. His name's Andrew." Kimber's excited squeal rang loudly through the receiver. I briefly wondered if I should be worried about this supposed 'hottest guy ever', especially if Ness had met him before. Maybe there was something I hadn't heard about yet.

"Buzzed hair, tats, and dimples, right?" she asked indifferently.

"Yeah. God, I just want to eat him up. Two more weeks and it is _on_!"

"Kim, can I call you later?"

Kimber did her pregnant-woman whine. I knew then that the conversation with Kimber was far from over. Ness couldn't deny her anything right now. She felt bad for the misery she was going through and did everything she could to make her happy. It usually didn't bother me in the slightest, but I was _trying_ to _propose._

Ness made a pouty face, mouthing the words, _I'm sorry._

"You've got five minutes," I whispered.

"Come _home_. I miss you. The Denali sisters are disappointed you're not here, too," Kimber whined, playing into Ness's weakness.

"I've got some business to take care of here. I'll be there Friday, though," she said apologetically.

Ness and Kimber chatted for a few more minutes before she finally convinced her that she was neglecting me and needed to go. Too bad the moment had come and gone. I wasn't about to propose now that Kimber had interrupted the _perfect_ moment.

"Who's Andrew?" I asked casually.

"One of the Denali men-of-the-moment. Apparently he's smitten with our Kimber. He's taking her on a real _date_ tomorrow night," Ness said, excited for her new sister.

"Kimber? On a _date_? Wow, that's a leap for her."

I didn't want to talk about it with Ness, but when Kimber and I were hooking up, we _never_ did anything remotely close to going on a date. We even made a point not to show up at parties together or around the same time.

"Where exactly does a vampire take a pregnant human on a date?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. He's surprising her, which probably means he has no idea."

"They're going alone?" I was right to be concerned. Kimber was a fragile human, even more so since she was pregnant. I wasn't nuts about the concept of her going _anywhere_ with this guy, especially unsupervised.

"I don't think anyone would allow him anywhere _near_ her if he was a threat. And last time I saw him, his eyes were ocher," she said, trying to placate my apprehension.

_Like that changes anything. _"You don't think she'll sleep with him, do you?"

Ness's body stiffened and she narrowed her eyes. "Why, you jealous or something?"

I slumped, looking at her incredulously. "Don't be ridiculous. I'm only asking because I don't want her to get hurt." And that was the _only_ reason.

"Well you'll be happy to know that she's waiting until after she's changed. I think she's learned her lesson on what happens when a human fucks a vampire." She still seemed a little peeved that I was asking about Kimber and concerned for her safety, but I guess I'd be the same way if our roles were reversed.

The tension in the air dissolved once I began showing Ness exactly how _not_ jealous I was by worshipping her body with my mouth and tongue. After I made my point – numerous times – we spent a little while longer relaxing in the sun before getting ready for dinner at Charlie's.

The round of questioning picked up right where they'd left off. This time, they got to know each other on a more personal level. Likes and dislikes, past experiences, opinions on current events. They only spoke to each other for the most part, but the rest of us didn't mind that at all. They needed this time together.

As eleven o'clock ticked closer and closer, everyone looked tired. The coffee we'd had with dessert was wearing off and Charlie had to be at work in the morning. I casually looked at my watch – like I didn't already know what time it was – and then at Ness. No one wanted us to leave, but we'd have to sooner or later. We were leaving for Seattle the next day, then Alaska that evening.

Beside me on the sofa, Ness yawned again and stretched. We looked at each other for a silent moment. I didn't want to be the one to tell her it was about time to head back to the campsite.

Charlie stood and cracked his back. "Well, you guys oughtta be getting back. That's a long hike you've got ahead of you. But don't be strangers." He looked at Ness and I somberly through his sleepy eyes.

Tears pricked in Ness's eyes and she tried to blink them back. She got up and met Charlie halfway. They embraced like they'd never see each other again, tight and unmoving.

"We won't," she murmured with a sniffle.

When they finally disconnected, she walked to where I was standing. The tears she'd tried to hold back had rolled down her cheeks and more were welling. She took a deep breath and casually wiped her face as though she was swatting away the tiredness, but she couldn't wipe away all the red in her face and eyes.

Seeing her like this only further solidified my determination to keep the two of them in each other's lives.

Charlie walked us out, closing the door behind him, his eyes shifting around nervously. "I don't know what's going on, but uh…could one of you have Edward call me?" He gave us both his card with his home phone number hand written on the back. "Please, just give him this. I know you know how to reach him."

Neither of us neither confirmed nor denied his suspicions. Ness tucked the card into her purse and buried her face in his shoulder one last time. I shook Charlie's hand and gave him an affirming look.

I held Ness impossibly close all night. Her sadness was palpable to me, and I wished there was something I could do to ease it. But I could only promise her that we'd see him again, and soon.

Charlie knew we'd be headed to Seattle the following morning, so I wasn't surprised when blue lights flashed behind us soon after we crossed into Forks. Ness pulled over to the side of the road with a smile on her face, eyes practically glowing. _Did they _plan_ this? _

"Oh, hey Ness! I didn't realize it was you," Charlie said once he reached the window.

_Yeah. Sure. _

"So does that mean you're not going to give me a ticket?" she asked humorously.

"Of course not, but with this new system the cars are equipped with, I do have to run your license and registration." _And follow the paper trail_. Funny, Charlie didn't ask me for shit when he had pulled me over Monday.

She handed him her license and the paperwork from the glove box with a gleaming smile. "No problem. I understand."

If he knew how to use his resources, which I was sure he did, he'd be knocking on the Cullen's door in no time.

**A/N: I almost split this into two chapters…but I figured since you guys have been waiting for this for like two weeks (or more?), I'd leave it as is. I should be able to send a teaser this time. And I hope to post a Second Chances update soon. **


	26. Remembered and Forgotten

**Chapter 25 – Remembered and Forgotten**

**NPOV **

**A/N: Another long one, with a taste of something that many of you have wanted for a long while. ;-) **

**Thanks to DeeDreamer Essathetwerp21 for being awesome betas! **

Douglas Island, in a word—sucked. There was a small town near the bridge to Juneau, which was home to most of the island's residents. The remaining twenty five square miles were practically uninhabited. While on the way to our temporary home, I noticed no more than six or seven mailboxes alongside the road. The houses were buried behind acres of wooded land.

It would be the perfect place for Kimber to…adjust.

Jasper and Alice had picked us up from the airport. The car ride was silent save for Jasper answering my few questions about the house and informing Jacob and me that we'd be rooming with Kimber for a little while. There weren't enough bedrooms in the house for everyone, and since Kimber was temporarily celibate, and Jacob and I were banned from so much as sleeping in the same bed, it made sense.

He failed to mention the mansion that was under construction farther back on the property. The thing was much larger than any of our previous homes.

"What's _that_?" I asked.

Alice sighed and smiled, just a small glimmer of her usual vitality. "Our new home. Isn't she beautiful? We've been working on it all week. If everything goes according to schedule – and it will – you'll be sleeping in your own room by next Thursday."

Jacob hoped to have a job and place of our own within a month or so. He had an interview scheduled in three days. Skyland Petroleum was setting up a new drilling site just outside of Juneau. Based on the qualifications listed in the online ad, Jacob would be the perfect recruit: a combination of brute strength and mechanical inclination.

I wasn't fond of the idea of him attending college _and_ working, but he had all of his classes mapped out and would graduate in about two years. I admired Jacob's drive and persistence. He had it all together. He decided what he wanted to study, made plans, and was executing them.

I, on the other hand, hadn't the slightest idea what I wanted to study. If it weren't for my complete disinterest in all things engineering, I'd pursue Jacob's major just to spend more time with him.

Instead, I'd spend the next few months grateful for every second we had together. Because once school started, we wouldn't get to see each other _nearly_ as much.

As Jacob and I exited the car, alabaster blurs flashed around the construction site, making their way to the front of the relatively small and outdated home. Alice and Jasper joined Carlisle, Esme, Rose, and Emmett, standing in a loose crowd at the bottom of the stairs that led to the front door. Their forged smiles and slumped shoulders and jerky gazes revealed things they'd never say, feelings of shame and regret at realizing that their 'good intentions' were something more along the lines of deception.

At the top of the brick steps, right in front of the oak door, my father stood rigid, motionless. His face was void of emotion, his true feelings buried just beneath the glacial surface.

Not that I gave a damn.

I was extremely upset with both my parents. Charlie's life seemed to have this gaping hole in it. He wasn't depressed, but it was evident that some integral part of his life was amiss: my mother. What they'd put him through was unforgivable. My parents had no right in the world to be even remotely upset about my meeting Charlie.

Standing at Dad's side, my mother gnawed her lower lip and shuffled her weight from foot to foot. Her honey eyes bounced from mine to the ground and back again. It took a lot to make a vampire that damn antsy.

Jacob and I walked toward the group of eternally youthful statues. Mom descended the stairs, leaving Dad alone with his hands shoved in his pockets, and linked arms with me.

"Welcome home, honey! I can't wait to hear all about your trip." She paused and took a long, deliberate breath. "Did Charlie seem…happy?"

"Why don't you ask him yourself?" I growled, pulling my arm from hers. I quickly slid his card from my pocket and flicked it at her.

Mom froze and her phony smile dropped. I shot her a disgusted glare and continued walking inside, bypassing shocked gazes and unhinged jaws.

I bounded past Dad with no acknowledgement and slammed the door behind me.

"Ness!" Kimber squealed.

I walked in the direction her voice had come from, needy for the breath of fresh air her presence would bring. I found her in the living room, sitting comfortably on the sofa. I sat beside her and leaned over, holding her against me closely. With her tummy pressed against mine I could feel how hard it was. I noticed the dramatic change in size as I pulled back.

"I missed you," I said, kissing her cheek.

"Me too. We've got so much to catch up on! Go change into some comfy clothes and come hang out with me."

I got up and followed Jacob's scent to our transitory bedroom. He'd already started unpacking our luggage. I dug through the piles of clothes and pulled out my favorite pair of yoga pants and a tank.

Just as I'd finished dressing, Dad came to the doorway looking highly pissed. _Like I care._

His approach was almost aggressive. "You owe your mother an apology. You will _not_ speak to her that way."

He towered over me, standing less than a foot in front of me. But I wasn't intimidated, especially not with Jacob standing at my side. I craned my neck and met his dark gaze. "Are you kidding me? Both of you disgusting, callous fucks can kiss my ass."

The next second was a blur. Dad growled, his arm reared back to slap me in the face. Jacob slid between us and grabbed his steel arm mid-swing, stopping him dead in his tracks.

"Move, Jacob," Dad said viciously, eyes burning through me.

Jacob didn't obey. "I can't let you hit her, Edward." His voice was calm, almost pleading, but there was a threatening edge to it. _Yeah, fuck with me and we'll see what happens._

Dad's neck muscles tightened and his mouth formed a thin line. The hatred I held for him in that moment was magnanimous in comparison to how much I'd loathed him when I ran away.

"_MOVE_, Jacob," he roared.

"It was my fault, Edward. Blame me. But no matter what, I will _not_ let you hit her." I couldn't see Jacob's face, but I'd bet it was pretty damn scary right then.

"She is my daughter and deserves to be punished for speaking to her mother so disrespectfully. Bella is very upset right now. Renesmee has been nothing but insolent for over a year and I'm absolutely _sick_ of it. I won't allow it anymore." Dad stared hard at Jacob, but he didn't budge.

"Edward! What's going on?" Esme wailed from the doorframe.

Dad's arm fell to his side. Jacob scooped me up and had us across the room in under a second.

"Nothing," Dad lied.

Esme knew better than that. "Were you going to hit Jacob?"

I stuck my head out from behind Jacob. "No, Grandma, he was going to hit _me_!"

"Edward! Is this true?" she asked, absolutely stunned. Dad had never come close to putting his hands on me.

"Bella would be in tears if she had them to weep," he said defensively, lowering his head.

"Come with me," Esme said firmly.

Dad followed her down the hall and outside. I heard a car engine start and assumed they left together.

"I need a run," Jacob said gruffly. "Hang out with Kimber. I'll be back in a little while." His large hands pulled my face to his, kissing me hard and hot, but not long enough. "I love you."

"I love you, too. Watch your back." I doubted my dad would hurt Jacob – especially after the scolding he was likely receiving from Esme – but there was no way to be sure.

How dare he try to put his hands on me. _He_ was the one that was wrong.

I passed the bedroom my mother was in on my way to the living room. Her high-pitched weeps didn't rouse the slightest bit of sympathy from me. She deserved much more than a card being thrown in her face. She made her bed and now she'd lay in it.

I rolled my eyes and went to the kitchen. Digging through the fridge, I pulled out all of my favorites – birthday cake ice cream, strawberries, raw cookie dough, and a soda. The pantry beckoned me next and I withdrew a can of Pringles and some cashews. Then I saw the bread and suddenly wanted a sandwich.

A few minutes later, I was pushing Esme's antique serving cart through the house to the living room where Kimber was watching some cheesy Lifetime movie. I spread the food across the coffee table and handed Kimber a fork and a spoon.

"Dig in," I said, grabbing the ice cream first.

She chuckled. "Ness, are you _seriously_ going to eat all that?"

"No, I got some for you, too, silly," I said through a mouth full of decadence.

Her nose curled. "I don't really eat that stuff anymore."

I rolled my eyes. "You're _pregnant_ and even if you _do_ put on a pound or two, it'll be gone with the change. Come on, indulge."

"I don't think you understand. I _can't_ eat that. It doesn't smell appealing at all. I haven't had human food in three days."

I grinned smugly and shrugged. "Oh well, more for me."

"Andrew is coming over tonight." Kimber's eyes sparkled. She couldn't deny the little tumble her heart did the moment she uttered his name.

"What did you guys do the other night?" I asked, chomping on my sandwich.

Her heart thumped again. "We went to his house in Juneau."

"Aaaaand?"

"He's got this balcony with an _amazing_ view of the waterfront. We talked out there for a long time until it got too cold for me." Her cheeks tinged pink.

"Mmmhmm," I mumbled, nodding and raising my brows in curiosity. My mouth was too stuffed for words.

"So we watched a movie…in his bedroom."

I choked down my mouthful of cookie dough. "Kimber, _please_ tell me you didn't—"

"No, no! He wouldn't have anyway; he covered that when we were talking on the balcony. We just, you know…messed around a little." She wouldn't meet my bulging eyes.

"Uh huh, and what does 'a little' mean exactly?"

She held up three fingers. That could mean a couple of different things. I placed my hand on her warm face gently. The first image was of the two of them making out. She nodded.

I continued to him groping her breast. Her heart thundered and she nodded again. His hand slid down her body and into her panties, dipping low to massage her most sensitive parts. Kimber's eyes became hooded; she bit her lip and barely nodded once more.

I wasn't comfortable thinking of his parts, so the next image only showed Kimber's head moving back and forth in front of his groin. Her arousal permeated the air around us.

She leaned in close to me and whispered, "He tasted like nothing I've ever put in my mouth." Her lips lingered at my ear. Her heavy breath moved across the sensitive skin of my neck and ear like a soft, warm caress, eliciting a chill down the side of my body, bringing my nipples to full attention.

"Ness," she murmured. Her lips brushed against my earlobe. My breathing turned ragged. Just like when we were at that frat party, I was completely lost in her. Without thinking, I closed my eyes and let her take control.

Her soft lips moved down my neck without kissing, just touching. She traced the shell of my ear with the tip of her nose. Then her hand slid up my tank top and into the built-in bra, rolling my taught nipple in her small fingers. I gasped and arched against the touch.

My hand tangled in her curly hair as she moved her mouth down my clavicle, seeking my breasts. Her tongue came out to taste here and there.

She paused when she reached the top of my stretchy tank, her fingers grasping the hem, ready to free my left breast and take it into her mouth. "Will Jacob be angry?" she breathed.

Jacob.

_Jacob! _

At once, I awoke from my lustful stupor, bringing my body upright again and gently moving Kimber to my side.

"Kim…I…I want to…_so_ much…but I can't do this without talking to Jacob. I can't do anything he wouldn't approve of."

Alice came bounding in the front door carrying a three foot stack of flooring samples. "What wouldn't he approve of?" she chirped. Then she actually looked at us, sniffing the air around her. "Tsk. You pervs." She flitted off with an impish giggle.

Kimber rolled her eyes playfully. "She cracks me up. Anyway, so yeah…Andrew is pretty awesome."

"I can tell. It's like this whole new side of you is showing." We went from almost-lovers to sisters, just like that. Weird.

"Yeah, I can't wait to have him. I mean _really_ have him."

"There's something else there, too. You can't hide it from me. You like him."

There her little heart went, skipping and tumbling all over the place. "Do not! He's nice and all, but I can't commit to him like that."

I cocked an eyebrow. "Stop being ridiculous. You _can't_ lie to me." I placed my fingers lightly against her aorta. "Your heart pounds at the mere mention of his name…Andrew." _Tumble._ "See?"

She swatted my hand away. "Cheater."

"I don't need to feel your pulse to know what your heart is doing. What time is he supposed to be here?" I asked just so I could see her reaction.

She quickly shot her eyes to the clock on the wall, her heart just a' bouncing. "Ten hours."

"People don't count the hours without a connection, Kim. But it's okay, I'll leave it alone. You can confess your undying love and devotion on your own time."

She pursed her lips and squinted her eyes at me. "Where's Jacob?"

_Go ahead, change the subject._

"Dad tried to slap me, Jacob stopped him, now Dad is with Esme and Jacob went to the woods to blow off steam," I said, bored with the subject already. My salt and sugar feast had me in a fabulous mood, the last thing I felt like doing was rehashing that drama.

I polished off the can of Pringles and spared a glance down to my normally-flat tummy. It protruded slightly from the immense amount of food I'd crammed in there.

"Wanna take a nap?" Kimber asked, yawning.

I'd spent most of the night on a plane, unable to sleep for any length of time. I was _definitely_ in need of a nap. "My bed or yours?" I asked jokingly, wagging my eyebrows.

"_Watch, Mama!" Lauren called from midway up a tall oak. She had to be at least forty feet up._

_I leapt from my chair on the back porch and ran to her. "How'd you get up there? Stay put, I'm coming to get you," I said as I began to scale the tree with practiced ease. _

"_No, Mama. Watch! Daddy said it was okay." _

_Of course Daddy said it was okay, he also let the kids eat raw animal flesh and jump into the pool from the roof. _

_My heart thundered, nearly shooting right out of my ribcage as I watched my precious daughter gain her footing. She looked intently at another tree and then leapt. I nearly fainted. She landed gracefully on a thick limb, grasping a couple of smaller branches for balance. _

"_Did you see?" she squealed, pleased with herself. _

"_Yes, I saw! Great job! Now come on down, baby, before I have a heart attack." My hands were trembling. _

_Jacob wrapped his arms around my midsection from behind, placing a soft kiss on my neck. "She's fine, babe. You've gotta let 'em be kids." _

_I let out a single laugh. "Kids don't jump from tree to tree, Jacob. They're too human for this behavior." _

_In true Jacob fashion, he protested, "Ness,_ they're not that human. _Of all the shit they get into, they've never once been hurt. Not even when Jay shoved that fork in the electrical socket, remember?" _

"_It's my nature to be protective. And apparently it's your nature to test the boundaries of their ability to recover," I said, slightly irritated. _

"_Naah, they do enough of that themselves." _

_My other two caramel-skinned gifts from above, Jay and Brandon, whipped around the side of the house. Brandon was chasing Jay, whose small hand was clenched around his precious slingshot – a gift from none other than Emmett. _

"_Jay, B, look!" Lauren called from up the tree. The boys stopped and ran to my and Jacob's side, staring up at their sister with matching expressions of horror. _

_Jacob looked at the three of us and resigned. "Alright, alright, I'll get her." _

_Before he could take a step, she jumped. Jacob and I centered ourselves at her projected landing spot and extended our arms to catch her, but she moved in the air, away from our reaching arms. She gracefully landed on Brandon's shoulders. _

_One day I'd find out the hard way that I was in fact capable of having a heart attack. _

_I enveloped my dark haired babies in my arms, pulling all three to my chest, kissing each one. _

I was abruptly awakened by a painful churning in the bottom of my gut. I'd become all too familiar with this feeling lately. I freed myself from Kimber's tight embrace and staggered to the bathroom with my hands clutched against my stomach, as if it'd keep the contents from spilling.

Luckily, I lived in a house of vampires. Kimber had been the only person to use the toilet, and Esme had a habit of cleaning germy fixtures daily, so I wasn't completely disgusted by the concept of my cheek resting against the icy cold porcelain. Everything I'd eaten earlier was flushed down the drain. My face was covered in a clammy sweat.

_Well that's the last time I gorge like that…. _

I thought about the dream all day. It wasn't often that I remembered my dreams, and when I did, they tended to hang around for a while. This was the second time I recalled dreaming about my and Jacob's children, but it felt like I'd done more than that.

The images in the dream were familiar to my subconscious, the names rolling off my tongue casually, like I'd uttered them a thousand times. Without trying, tiny flickers of other dreams came to mind. Nothing comprehensible, though. The three little ones were so beautiful, and waking from the dream was saddening.

That evening, Kimber hobbled around the house eagerly, getting ready like a giddy little teenager. She could say whatever she wanted, but the girl was crushing on Andrew hard. She came into our bedroom wearing a super cute sweater dress and ballet flats. Her red-brown curls and makeup were flawless, her pink lips smiling wide and bright.

"You look pretty," I said with a grin.

"You think? I don't feel like it. But Andrew…he makes me feel…ugh Ness, he makes me feel…beautiful," Kimber said, lost in thought.

I put down my laptop and went to her side. "You _are_ beautiful."

She slumped. "I'm not good with this stuff; the whole 'having feelings for someone' thing. I need help." She looked at me hopefully.

Kimber only ever had one serious boyfriend, and he was the biggest bastard to ever walk the earth. Well, the biggest human bastard, anyway. I wouldn't doubt it if she killed him one day. He was verbally and physically abusive. He threatened to kill her on more than one occasion, and one time he actually tried. She still carried the mental scars even though it'd been nearly four years since she finally left him for good. It was something she didn't like to talk about, but she'd opened up to me.

I held her hand in mine and looked her straight in the eye. "Andrew isn't that guy." She never told me her ex's name; I think she did that on purpose. Maybe she was protecting him, or maybe it hurt her too much to say it. "Give him a chance. Dad doesn't freely talk about people's thoughts, but I know for certain that he wouldn't let Andrew anywhere _near_ you if he wasn't trustworthy."

The Warren issue proved my dad's talent to be less than infallible. Dad said that Warren snapped. He wasn't psychotic to begin with, he just lost it. But maybe he managed to conceal his obsession with me somehow. We'd never know for certain.

"I've kept myself closed off for so long. I'm comfortable with him, though. I _want_ to let him in. But what if it's just that vampire dazzling thing? What if he doesn't have any true interest in me?" Her brows knitted together, forming a little crease in the middle.

"You'll never know unless you try. If he's just 'dazzling' you, someone would have noticed the first time. Just go slow. Time will tell if he really likes you."

She released the tension that had been holding her shoulders rigid, sagging a little. "I hope you're right."

The old doorbell chimed through the house, and with the sound came Kimber's thundering heart and flushed cheeks. She was in deeper than she'd ever admit. She sprayed some of my perfume in her hair – as if she needed it – and we walked down the hall together.

Andrew's physical appearance didn't match his demeanor at all. He stood tall, almost as tall as Jacob, maybe six foot five. His wide shoulders pulled at the cotton of his black Tap Out t-shirt. Both forearms were artfully tattooed. The one on his right arm continued up the inside of his shirt sleeve and onto his neck, the only bare skin was the crescent bite mark at his jugular.

His thick neck led to a strong jaw, deep-set eyes, and prominent cheekbones. He was handsome, very much so – but nothing compared to my wolf. I'd met him when I was maybe ten or eleven physically, but I didn't find him handsome then. With his brawn and dark spiky hair and red eyes I thought he looked _scary_.

Andrew's wide, genuine smile flashed when his eyes met Kimber's, revealing dimples in his cheeks. I understood why Kimber was able to fall for him. That smile had even _me_ entranced.

He met us where we stood on the steps, discarding Kimber's crutches and lifting her into his solid arms. She didn't protest like she would have if it were Jacob or one of my family members. She just grinned affectionately – an expression I'd only dreamed of seeing on her face.

Once downstairs, he sat her gently on the sofa and extended a hand to me. "Good to see you again. I wouldn't have recognized you if it weren't for your hair. You're all grown up now."

I'd heard that last line so many times in the last couple of years. Every time we visited someone they'd look me over as if they were viewing some scientific phenomena.

Although I liked him already, I wasn't going to let him know that. "Good to see you, too. I hope you've been good to my new sister," I said with a hint of malice.

"She's amazing. I've been nothing but a gentleman." He smiled at her. The longing and warmth in their eyes wasn't lost on me. I'd be replaying that one to Kimber later, when she tried to deny her feelings again.

"Good." I pulled him to me as if to hug him and placing a firm hand against his bicep. _Hurt her and it'll be the last thing you do,_ I projected to him.

His expression won me over – the creased brow and wide eyes of an honest man who'd just been insulted. Lowering his voice so low that only I could hear, he said, "I'd never. She's everything I've ever wanted and never thought I deserved."

Watching Kimber and Andrew interact was interesting. I'd never been witness to the awkward first stages of dating someone. Jacob and I went from strangers to practically engaged.

_But not, _I thought to myself, a little dejected.

Andrew was definitely the one putting on the moves, touching her skin and hair every time opportunity presented itself: gently running his fingers through her hair, nuzzling her cheek as she settled against his chest, skimming his fingertips across her forearm. Neither were focused on the movie, though both their faces were turned toward the TV screen.

I settled deeper into the sofa and thought about the dream I had earlier. The dark-skinned angels looked no older than three. Jacob's eyes, as he'd watched our—_our_ kids run around, had sparkled in a way I'd never seen, not even when he had played with his sister's kids. It was all fluid warmth and pride and adoration. The smile touched every part of his beaming face.

My remembrance had my stomach fluttering. The thought of Jacob as father to _our_ children roused feelings a "nineteen" year old college freshman should never have…a longing for something I'd only ever considered in the abstract, fifty years from now. But now I had faces and names for the cast, and the distant future wasn't soon enough.

I didn't realize the movie was over until Kimber threw a pillow at me, snapping me from my trance. "_I said_, do you want some of my dinner?"

I hadn't gone on a proper hunt in weeks. Instinctively, my mouth salivated and I could smell the human blood as if it were right under my nose. My body tingled at just the thought of that warm, sweet fluid dousing the burning in the back of my throat.

I shared a couple of pints of O-Negative with Kimber, though I'm not sure if _shared_ is the right word, since I would have fought for every drop like a savage animal hovering over its prey had it been anyone else.

When there was nothing left, not even a glass to lick clean, I got in the shower. The steamy heat of the water reminded me of Jacob. I hated what happened earlier, but I had to admit, seeing him defend me like that made me proud, honored even. He was willing to take on my father – and thus, every vampire in the house, even if they had no idea what was going on or why they were about to rip each other's throats out.

I sat on the shower floor, letting the thick steam carry me somewhere far from shitty ol' Douglas, Alaska.

_La Push. That's where I'd rather be. _

I thought back to our campsite, how it felt like home. We could have been anywhere and it would have felt the same. Just me, Jacob, and our bare necessities. That's all I'd ever need in life.

The first time we'd made love in the forest, I was sort of shy. What if someone saw or heard?

"_No one's going to hear. Don't you think we'd know if someone was around?" Jacob asked, wrapping his arms low around my waist from his spot beside me in the tent, peppering my lips with light kisses. He stopped for a second, his face hovering over mine so closely I could feel his warm breath brush across my skin. The pleading look in his eyes could get him _anything_. _

_I resigned with a soft sigh. He'd never have to beg much to get my clothes off. _

_Jacob's kisses became hotter and deeper. His hot soft lips melded to mine in such a divine way. Thick fingers grasped the hem of my tank top and pulled it upward. Our lips parted just long enough to get it over my head. His hands weren't off me for long, coming to grasp the back of my neck, holding me firmly as he assaulted my mouth. The intensity made my thighs clench and rub together, searching for any sort of friction. _

My hand came up to my nipple, teasing it as Jacob had; only my fingers were tiny in comparison.

"_I love you," he murmured against my neck as his hands slid down my sides. _

"_Mmm…I love you." _

_Jacob pushed my shorts down as far as he could reach and I kicked them off the rest of the way. He caressed my inner thigh as he ascended to the place that longed for him. _

My fingertips trailed along in a similar manner, inching closer to where he'd taken me. It'd been so long since I'd touched myself, but doing so while remembering such a beautiful moment felt like an act of reverence. Besides, I was too far gone at this point to wait for Jacob to satisfy my desperate need.

_He kissed and licked his way down my neck, finally reaching my taught breasts with his tongue, grunting as he tasted. A hand dipped down and he slowly massaged my clit. _

_I moaned and quickly covered my mouth, still afraid someone would hear. _

_Jacob quickly moved it away. "Don't. I want to hear," he said huskily. _

_What my man wanted, he got. I threw caution to the wind and let him know just how amazing he was making me feel. _

As I remembered Jacob sliding a thick finger into my body, I pressed in two. The slight surge of pleasure it brought paled in comparison to what I'd experienced every time Jacob touched my body.

_I longed to feel him deep inside me. "Unh…Jacob…I need you." _

_He spread my legs with his knee gently as he climbed on top of me. With a powerful thrust, our bodies were one. _

I massaged my swollen clit rapidly with two fingers, letting out a few gasps of pleasure but wishing I'd brought a vibrator or _something_ with me. Unfortunately, the shower head wasn't the detachable kind. This wasn't going to cut it. I needed _him. _

As if Jacob heard my thoughts – well, more likely my moans – he came into the bathroom. Through the glass shower door, he stared at me stunned. I was lying naked on the floor with a hand on my breasts and one between my legs. My entire body turned crimson.

I'd just been caught _masturbating_.

He must've liked what he saw, because anxiously he jerked his sweats off and had his naked body stretched across mine in mere seconds. Jacob's scent – thick with the smell of fresh sweat and the outdoors – further aroused me. His erection pressed firmly against my thigh as his hands explored, groping and caressing.

With a shift of my hips, Jacob's cock was at my entrance. Our eyes met as he slid inside, filling me to the hilt. The shower sprayed Jacob's back, water running all down his hard muscles and dark hair. It was like we were in the midst of a summer rainstorm, like in La Push.

He brought me to climax twice with ease. Out of respect for the others in the house, I tried to keep my voice down, not that they ever did.

We exited the bathroom and found the house almost empty – well, four people seemed pretty empty when there were eleven living under one roof. Only Emmett, Rose – whom I'd still not spoken to – Alice, and Jasper remained. Kimber left us a note on the bed she and I shared, saying that she was going to Andrew's for a while and would be back in a few hours.

I put my mp3 player into the docking station and scrolled down to my newest playlist – a bunch of songs that reminded me of Jacob.

"What do you want to do for your birthday?" Jacob asked, sprawled across the bed, consuming the whole damn thing.

I sat cross-legged at his waist, caressing his rippled abdomen. "Camping sounds nice right about now." I laughed inwardly, my thoughts wandering back to my time alone in the shower earlier. "It'll probably be too cold by then, though."

It was already pretty chilly out. It'd be much too cold for camping in a few more weeks.

"Naah. Especially not with your own personal space heater. But if you'd rather do something else, that's fine. It's up to you," he replied with a loving smile that melted my heart.

Jacob's eyes sagged and closed as my hand skimmed lightly across his collarbone and neck. He was so relaxed and comfortable…and incredibly sexy, wearing nothing but simple gym shorts that sat low on his hips.

"Something nearby. I get tired and queasy just _thinking_ about getting on another plane."

"Take your time deciding. Just let me know by Thursday," he mumbled, peeking his eyes open for a second.

I looked at him curiously. "Why Thursday? You got something up your sleeve?"

He raised his brows. "Umm…maybe because your birthday is _Friday_?" he said jokingly.

"No, my birthday isn't for another two weeks _at least_." I glanced down at my watch to check the date. _No way, it can't be the third already. I haven't had my…_

_Oh God…_

_Where's my pill pack? _

_When was the last…_

_Oh God…_

My brain whirled through numbers and dates, calculating the impossible.

_July twenty ninth_

_August thirteenth…the day we met…the day I would've…_

_August twenty sixth….it should've…but…no way… _

…_..September Third_

My heart absolutely pounded. I could feel my blood pumping through every capillary and vein and artery. As if to confirm my suspicion, my stomach churned. I felt faint. A cold sweat broke out over my body.

_The nausea….the constant fatigue…the eating... _

It wasn't from all the traveling.

Or from being around humans who actually ate.

_I'm…I'm…_

_No. Impossible. _

_I can't be…._

_Pregnant?_

A/N: Congrats to Lena0123 for being the first to guess, all the way back on chapter 19. I'll hopefully have a Second Chances update here soon.


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